Home Minister Altaf Hossain Chowdhury tabled the bill, The Armed Police Battalions (Amendment) Act, 2003, to clear the way for the formation of the RAB by amending the Armed Police Battalions Ordinance, 1979.

The passage of the bill will give the Rapid Action Team (RAT) an institutional shape and rename it as the RAB under the existing Armed Police Battalion (APBn).

The RAB members will be drawn from the army, navy, air force and police.

As it is not possible to maintain law and order with the regular police force only, the government formed 23 Rapid Action Teams by employing selected officers from the regular police force, the bill said.

As the scope of the teams, each comprising 12 policemen, expanded, the government felt it necessary to give the specially trained law enforcement team an institutional shape, it added.

All Rapid Action Battalions will be under the direct control and superintendence of an officer not below the rank of deputy inspector general (DIG) of police or its equivalent in any disciplined force.

The amendment bill says the government will have the authority to direct the RAB to investigate any offence at any time.

The commanding officer of a RAB team can himself investigate such offences or direct a subordinate officer to investigate, the bill said, adding the investigation officer will follow the Criminal Procedure Code (CrPC), 1898 or any other law as merits the offence.

Upon completion of investigation, the RAB investigator will file a report with the officer-in-charge (OC) of the relevant police station and the OC will forward the same to a competent court within 48 hours.

The RAB members will be able to exercise the powers, functions and duties of a police officer under the CrPC, the bill said.

The victim was married and has a daughter, Meena, aged five years and a son, Raju, aged nine months.

The duty officer of Demra Police Station said they did not know of the incident as none went to the police station till 7:00pm yesterday.