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The ex-prime minister of Bangladesh has been handed capital punishment for human rights violations due to her severe measures on student-led protests which caused her forced departure.

Sheikh Hasina was found guilty of permitting fatal actions to be used against activists, with approximately 1,400 individuals were killed during the disturbances during 2024.

The trial proceeded in absentia by the International Crimes Court in Bangladesh, as she resides in exile in India following her ouster in July 2024.

Legal authorities charged her of being the mastermind of numerous deaths during the protests. Hasina has denied every accusation, labeling the proceedings as "prejudiced and driven by politics".

The verdict marks a pivotal moment for Bangladesh, as the protests revealed fury over years of repression. Relatives of the deceased and wounded had called for tough penalties.

Answering the judgment in a five-page statement, Hasina said the death penalty was the interim government's way of "eradicating the Awami League" as a political force and that she was content of her administration's performance on individual freedoms.

"I do not fear to meet my challengers in a proper tribunal where the proof can be evaluated and examined justly."

The capital, Dhaka, where the court convened, was under enhanced protection prior to the decision on Monday, with numerous opponents of Hasina organizing a demonstration and celebrating as the verdict was read.

The city has seen a notable rise in disturbances, with multiple explosives detonated and buses set on fire in the days leading up to the verdict.

At least one bomb explosion was reported in Dhaka on Monday morning, with zero injuries documented, regional security representative the police spokesperson stated to press agencies.

The youth-driven revolt last year started with demands to abolish public sector reservation policies but transformed into a more extensive dissent initiative.

UN human rights investigators said in a report in February that the around 1,400 fatalities could amount to "crimes against humanity".

The report documented the gunfire from minimal distance of some protesters, the intentional injuring of further participants, unjustified apprehensions and abuse.

Unauthorized recordings of a telephone conversation involving Hasina authenticated by media examinations in previous months indicated she had approved the use of "fatal instruments" in July 2024. The sound file was broadcast in court during the legal process.

Before the decision, family members of those who died in the demonstrations told news agencies they wanted strict consequences for Hasina.

Ramjan Ali, whose sibling was killed in July 2024, said he wanted "exemplary punishment" for the former leader and associates who have "committed acts of vengeance and misused their authority".

A different family member, whose spouse died near Dhaka in August 2024, said she wanted the former leader's punishment to be "executed before the election".

"Exclusively thereafter the relatives of the deceased [in the protests] will obtain solace in their hearts."

Following her removal, an caretaker administration headed by Nobel laureate Muhammad Yunus has taken charge. A national vote is planned for February 2026.

However, the her former political organization, her political faction, was outlawed by Bangladesh's interim government in May.

Hasina warned in the previous month that if the her faction's nominees were banned from standing in the forthcoming vote, countless would abstain the ballot.

This decision presents a foreign relations issue for both nations. Dhaka has formally requested her return but so far India has demonstrated no inclination to acquiesce.

Her officially designated attorney Mohammad Amir Hossain said he was "unhappy and desiring the verdict had been different".

"I am unable to challenge because my represented individuals are away; that's why I am disheartened," he stated further.

Recently, Hasina's lawyers said they had filed an urgent appeal to the UN raising significant due process and legal procedure concerns at the ICT.

Hasina was tried together with her ex-interior minister and security forces head.

While the sentence grants partial finality to families of killed in the protests, it may not significantly ease the nation's partisan rifts.

"The anger against Hasina and the her political party has not diminished," a Dhaka-based rights activist informed press agencies. "The leader and her faction has said sorry or demonstrated contrition for the deaths of numerous individuals."

The advocate declared "This complicates matters for the party to be accepted by a bulk of the population in this country."

The advocate continued that the punishment was not closure for the families of those fatally and non-fatally harmed.

"We assist several people who underwent irreversible limb loss, they are currently without limbs, as a result of the harsh measures. They are incapable of excusing her."

A journalist, a journalist and a long-time Bangladesh watcher, said the "very nature of the conviction could make it particularly hard" for her party to become a regular participant of the nation's political landscape again.

This might transform if "there is some kind of apology and a disassociation with Sheikh Hasina and the former hierarchy," he said.