The was a Japanese revolutionary group formed in 1868 during the Boshin War.
During the Boshin War, the Sekihà Âtai was formed on February 1, 1868 at Kongà Ârin-ji temple in Matsuoji, à Âmi Province with the support of Saigà  Takamori and Iwakura Tomomi. Imperial court officials Ayanokoji Toshizane and Shigenoi Kinhisa were appointed as leaders of the army.
The Sekihà Âtai had three units. Sagara Sà Âzà  was the captain of the first unit. The Sekihà Âtai's second unit had as its captain the former captain of the Shinsengumi's ninth unit, Suzuki Mikisaburà Â, and was composed of his elder brother Ità  Kashitarà Â's followers who had deserted the Shinsengumi. The third unit's captain was Yukawa Rensaburà  of the Minakuchi Clan and it was composed mainly of Minakuchi Clan warriors.
The Sekihà Âtai traveled the countryside spreading news about the upcoming change of regime. The Meiji government had made promises such as tax cuts that could not be kept, so the Sekihà Âtai were used as a scapegoat, with the government calling them a "false army".
The Sekihà Âtai's actions gradually became a burden to the new government which repealed the 50% reduction in land rent on the 27th. On the same day, Ayanokoji Toshizane was ordered by his father Ohara Shigetomi to return to Kyoto. The 2nd and 3rd units returned to Kyoto without the 1st unit. The 1st unitâÂÂwhich was under Sagara Sà Âzà ÂâÂÂchanged its name to and continued its attack along the Tosan Highway.
Sagara and members of the first unit were arrested on March 24, 1868 outside Shimosuwa and were sentenced to death by decapitation on March 26, 1868. However, Suzuki and the second unit continued to serve the Ishin Shishi (Imperialists). As for the members of third unit, many were executed due to their plundering behavior.
Recently, the name Sekihà Âtai refers to a 1980s political group of a similarly extreme, though less military bent. The full name of the group was Nippon Minzoku Dokuritsu Giyugun Betsudo Sekihà Âtai, which translates roughly as Blood Revenge Division of the People's Partisan Corps Working for the Independence of the Japanese Race. This group was responsible for the death of reporter, Tomohiro Kojiri, when a member fired a shotgun at the Hanshin Bureau of the Asahi Shimbun in Nishinomiya, Hyà Âgo Prefecture on January 24, 1987. The group also made several threats against the lives of two prime ministers, Yasuhiro Nakasone and Noboru Takeshita, citing as their cause the changes made to textbooks about World War II. The actions of the Sekihà Âtai have been listed as evidence of increased violence among Japanese political extremists.
The case was named Metropolitan Designated Case 116. The statute of limitations on the crimes expired in March 2003, but supralegal investigations have been made since.
In February 2009, a group claiming to be Sekihà Âtai sent threatening messages to a NHK news anchor.