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The country's previous leader has been sentenced to death for human rights violations over her crackdown on student-led protests which led to her removal from power.

Hasina was declared culpable of authorizing deadly measures to be used against protesters, 1,400 of whom were killed during the unrest in the previous year.

The trial proceeded without her presence by the International Crimes Tribunal (ICT) in Bangladesh, as she resides in exile in India following her ouster in July 2024.

The prosecution alleged of being behind multiple fatalities during the protests. Hasina has denied every accusation, describing the process as "unfair and agenda-driven".

The verdict marks a critical juncture for Bangladesh, as the protests unleashed anger over extended periods of oppression. Relatives of the deceased and wounded had called for strict sentences.

Responding to the decision in a comprehensive declaration, the former leader stated the capital punishment was the caretaker administration's way of "nullifying [her party] the Awami League" as a electoral entity and that she was content of her administration's performance on individual freedoms.

"I am not afraid to face my accusers in a just legal forum where the facts can be assessed and examined justly."

The capital, Dhaka, where the legal proceedings occurred, was under tightened security before the ruling on Monday, with many of Hasina's critics organizing a demonstration and applauding as the verdict was read.

The capital witnessed a notable rise in turmoil, with dozens of bombs exploded and public transport vehicles burned in the time before the verdict.

A minimum of one detonation was recorded in Dhaka on Monday morning, with no casualties reported, local police official Jisanul Haque informed news organizations.

The youth-driven revolt during 2024 commenced through requests to remove state employment quotas but transformed into a wider anti-government movement.

United Nations rights examiners declared in an analysis in February that the around 1,400 fatalities could constitute "violations of human dignity".

The study recorded the firing at close quarters of certain demonstrators, the intentional injuring of additional individuals, unjustified apprehensions and torture.

Unauthorized recordings of one of Hasina's phone calls authenticated by external reviews in previous months implied she had sanctioned the use of "lethal weapons" in July 2024. The recording was presented in court during the trial.

Prior to the ruling, family members of those killed during the protests informed media representatives they wanted the former leader to face strict penalties.

One relative, whose brother was shot dead in July 2024, said he wanted "severe penalty" for the former leader and associates who have "engaged in retaliatory actions and exploited their positions".

A different family member, whose husband was killed near Dhaka in August 2024, said she wanted her penalty to be "implemented before the election".

"Exclusively thereafter the relatives of the deceased [in the protests] will achieve closure in their hearts."

Following her removal, an interim government led by Nobel laureate Muhammad Yunus has taken charge. A parliamentary election is planned for February 2026.

However, the Hasina's political party, the former ruling party, was outlawed by Bangladesh's temporary leadership in May.

The former leader cautioned last month that if the the League's representatives were prohibited from running in the forthcoming vote, numerous would avoid the ballot.

This decision presents a foreign relations issue for the neighboring countries. Dhaka has formally requested her repatriation but so far India has expressed no readiness to comply.

Hasina's state-appointed lawyer Mohammad Amir Hossain said he was "disappointed and hoping the decision had been otherwise".

"I cannot even contest because my defendants are not present; for that reason I am disappointed," he stated further.

The previous week, Hasina's lawyers said they had submitted an immediate petition to the UN raising significant due process and due process issues at the ICT.

Legal proceedings involved Hasina alongside her former home minister and security forces head.

Although the punishment provides certain resolution to kin of victims in the protests, it may do little to soothe the nation's partisan rifts.

"The resentment towards Sheikh Hasina and the Awami League has not diminished," a human rights advocate from the capital informed media outlets. "Neither she nor the party has expressed regret or shown any remorse for the killings of hundreds of people."

She said "It makes it difficult for the organization to receive endorsement by a most citizens in this state."

The campaigner further stated that the penalty was not resolution for the kin of those fatally and non-fatally harmed.

"We assist several people who suffered permanent amputations, they are now disabled, due to the crackdown. They will never be able to forgive her."

An analyst, a commentator on the nation's politics, said the "inherent character of the guilty verdict could make it particularly hard" for her party to become a standard element of the country's governance system again.

This may change if "there is some kind of apology and a distancing from the former leader and the old leadership," he said.