During the tenure of the Awami League government, the Rapid Action Battalion (RAB) has been heavily criticised due to its involvement in enforced disappearances, extrajudicial killings, torture in secret detention centres, and other serious human rights violations. Consequently, there is widespread public support for the dissolution of RAB. The commission investigating disappearances also recommended dissolving RAB in its final report, "Unfolding the Truth: A Structural Diagnosis of Enforced Disappearances in Bangladesh," stating that RAB was central to the disappearances, torture, and extrajudicial killings described in their report.

It is notable that during the Awami League's tenure, the United States imposed sanctions on this force in 2021. After the mass uprising in 2024, the report by the United Nations Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, which conducted independent investigations into human rights violations and abuses related to the mass uprising, also recommended the dissolution of RAB.

In this context, the passing of the Special Response Battalion (SRB) Act, 2026, concerning the dissolution of RAB in parliament on 10 September was expected to be a hopeful development. Unfortunately, this is not the case. Although the act contains provisions for dissolving RAB, it essentially retains the fundamental structure, powers, and functions of the force, merely changing its name. A new elite force named the Special Response Battalion (SRB) is being formed to replace RAB.