During the Mughal period, the royal elephants kept in this place used to go for grazing in the nearby jungle to the east, which was later turned into
Dhaka Nawab's Garden, now known as Paribagh and Shahbagh. The path between Pilkhana and the jungle, through which the elephants traversed, later became a public road named
Elephant Road. After the fall of the
Mughal Empire, the place named Pilkhana continued to be used in the same manner and before the
British Empire took over the place for their military activity. In 1876,
Viceroy of India founded "Frontier Force" and established its headquarters in Pilkhana. This Frontier Force changed its name as Assam Bengal Rifles in the year 1920 AD. After the achievement of
Pakistan the name of this para-military force was changed to
East Pakistan Rifles (EPR), thereafter during the Independence War of 1971, the name of EPR was changed to East Pakistan Civil Armed Force (EPCAF). After the
Independence of Bangladesh, it was changed to
Bangladesh Rifles (BDR), and after the BDR carnage on 25 February 2009, it has been changed currently as
Border Guard Bangladesh,
BGB. Although with the passage of time the name of the said para-military force was changed on a number of occasions but the headquarters of it remains in Pilkhana.
1971-present 1971, 25 March: At midnight, the Pakistan Army attacked the EPR headquarters at Pilkhana.
2009, 25–28 February: The
2009 Bangladesh Rifles revolt took place. Members of the
Bangladesh Rifles mutinied against senior officials of BDR who were mostly from Bangladesh Army. While the exact reasons for such a widespread mutiny largely remains unknown, words have been on the air regarding possible involvement of vested political quarters inside Bangladesh and even of forces outside Bangladesh. On that fateful day of 25 February 2009 at 9 AM Bangladesh Rifles
jawans entered the "Darbar Hall" auditorium killing BDR Director General Major General
Shakil Ahmed. Over the next three days, the BDR jawans killed as many as 54 officers and their family members including women and children. The conflict left as many as 57 people dead and 6 missing. ==Location==