Bangladesh Police is the core law enforcement agency of Bangladesh. It is administered under the Ministry of Home Affairs of the Government of Bangladesh. It plays the prime and pivotal role in maintaining law and order of the state. Though police is primarily concerned with maintaining law and order assuring security of public life and property.
Ancient Period:
History unfolds the fact that police is as old as the civilization. Towards the Middle of the first century B.C. police emerged as a special institution in ancient Rome in the regime of Augustus.Manushanghita, the hieroglyphics of Emperor Ashoka, and the stories of renowned travelers are the main sources of our history. These sources also give clues to compose the fragmented history of Bangladesh Police. In Orthoshastra by Koutilla, nine types of spies are mentioned. During that period policing was confined to the efforts of collecting intelligence in order to curb anti-government activities and to maintain law and order in the society. The duties of undercover spies were extended such a way that they used to conduct surveillance over the activities of ministers, civil and military officials as well. In the process, all tangible means of temptations and instigations were deployed. Information about investigating techniques and investigating authorities may be found in Orthoshastra. The procedures of punishing the accused are also found in this book. Hence, it may be assumed that there happened to be a kind of police under the local autonomous system in the rural and urban areas.
British Period:
The establishment of a systaematic police force in England was of slow growth and came into effect after its creation abroad. In the early stage of Industrial Revolution when England was facing grave crisis due to socioeconomic transformation, the necessity of an effective organized police service was keenly felt. Sir Robert Peel, the then Prime Minister introduced a bill in the British Parliament in 1829 which created an organized civil police in the nearby London Metropolis. Initially there were some opposition to the existence of this uniform police but the success of the London police in controlling social disorder and crime captured imagination of not only the people of England but also of the whole Europe and America. New York city copied the London model with some modifications when it organized the first Municipal Police Force 1833.
Pakistan Period:
After the partition of the Sub-continent in 1947, police force in Bangladesh was first named as East Bengal Police and then as East Pakistan Police and it continued to function as provincial police force in the same lines as it was during the British rule.
However, the police force of Pakistan continued the system of British period. Police were compelled to carry out unpopular orders. The act of shooting on the participants of language movement demonstration in 1952 was a glaring example of colonial rule and suppression.
Role of Police in Liberation War:
The most glorious chapter of the history of Bangladesh Police is that Bangla speaking members of our police participated along with the citizens in our Independence War. The resistance by the Bengali members of police at Rajarbag is basically the first chapter of armed struggles during our War of independence. Many police personnel embraced martyrdom on 25 March 1971 fighting bravely with mere .303 rifles against the Pakistani invaders.
Bangladesh Period:
After the emergence of Bangladesh as an independent country on 16 December 1971, the existing police force of Bangladesh got remodeled and reshaped as Bangladesh Police and assumed the role of a national police force. Bangladesh Police is primarily responsible for the preservation of peace and order, protection of life and property of the people and prevention and detection of crime within the periphery of the state. The traditional role of police in Bangladesh has undergone significant changes after the liberation. The role of police, at the moment, is no longer confined to maintenance of law and order and prevention and detection of crime. Apart from the mandatory works that needs to be done, there are manifold problems that need taking care of. To meet the need of an independent and developing country, the police is now required to play a significant role in the development process by providing the basic security required for sustained economic growth of the country. Police also is contributing substantially in this field by keeping under control the economic and techno-crimes which retard the process of the development. It is further playing a vital role in disaster management, environment, ecotourism, bio-diversity conservation and so on, which have got enormous impact on state economy and development.
