RAB Disbanded; Specialized Police Unit SRB Formed
The draft of the ‘Special Response Battalion (SRB) Act, 2026’, subject to legislative review, has received final Cabinet approval, opening the door for the Rapid Action Battalion (RAB) to be dissolved and replaced with a specialised unit that is directly under the police force. The reform, which was approved on Monday, August 17, at the 17th Cabinet meeting, aims to restructure the nation’s top-tier law enforcement system. According to a news statement from the Cabinet Division, all current personnel, operating authority, facilities, finances, records, and associated assets of RAB will be completely transferred to the newly established SRB.
The Act creates a multilateral grievance resolution committee with the responsibility of handling both internal conflicts among unit members and public complaints in order to guarantee accountability and openness within the new structure. The bill also contains transitional provisions that guarantee ‘existing RAB-related departmental proceeding rules will remain in force with necessary adaptations’ until new regulations are prepared. With the official integration of elite response capabilities into the regular police command chain, this administrative change represents a significant structural change in Bangladesh’s security architecture.
