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Bangladesh's former prime minister has been given a death sentence for human rights violations due to her crackdown on student-led protests which resulted in her removal from power.

Sheikh Hasina was found guilty of authorizing deadly measures to be used against activists, with approximately 1,400 individuals lost their lives during the disturbances in the previous year.

Legal proceedings were conducted without her presence by the International Crimes Court in Bangladesh, since she went into exile in India after being removed from office in July 2024.

Prosecutors accused her of being behind numerous deaths during the protests. Hasina has denied all charges, describing the process as "biased and politically motivated".

This judgment represents a pivotal moment for Bangladesh, as the protests brought forth resentment over extended periods of oppression. Families of those killed and wounded had called for tough penalties.

Answering the judgment in a comprehensive declaration, Hasina said the capital punishment was the temporary leadership's way of "eradicating the Awami League" as a political force and that she was content of her administration's performance on civil liberties.

"I do not fear to meet my challengers in a just legal forum where the evidence can be weighed and examined justly."

Bangladesh's main city, Dhaka, where the tribunal took place, was under increased safeguards ahead of the ruling on Monday, with numerous opponents of Hasina organizing a demonstration and cheering as the sentence was declared.

The capital witnessed a notable rise in unrest, with numerous incendiary devices set off and coaches ignited in the days leading up to the verdict.

One explosive incident was recorded in Dhaka on Monday morning, with no victims identified, local police official Jisanul Haque told news organizations.

The protest movement led by students last year started with calls to eliminate government job quotas but transformed into a wider anti-government movement.

United Nations rights examiners said in a report in February that the around 1,400 fatalities could constitute "violations of human dignity".

The paper detailed the shooting at point-blank range of certain demonstrators, the deliberate maiming of additional individuals, unwarranted detentions and mistreatment.

Unauthorized recordings of one of Hasina's phone calls verified by external reviews in previous months suggested she had sanctioned the use of "lethal weapons" in July 2024. The sound file was broadcast in court during the trial.

Prior to the ruling, relatives of those killed during the protests informed press outlets they wanted the former leader to face strict penalties.

A family representative, whose family member was fatally wounded in July 2024, said he wanted "strict sentence" for the former leader and associates who have "performed revengeful deeds and abused their power".

Another relative, whose husband was killed near Dhaka in August 2024, said she wanted Hasina's sentence to be "executed before the election".

"Only then the relatives of the deceased [in the protests] will obtain solace in their hearts."

Since Hasina's ousting, an temporary leadership under the guidance of economist Muhammad Yunus has assumed control. A parliamentary election is set for February 2026.

However, the Hasina's political party, Hasina's political party, was prohibited by Bangladesh's interim government in May.

Hasina warned last month that if the her faction's nominees were prohibited from running in the upcoming election, countless would abstain the ballot.

The judgment creates a foreign relations issue for India and Bangladesh. Dhaka has formally requested her extradition but until now India has expressed no readiness to acquiesce.

Hasina's state-appointed lawyer the defense lawyer said he was "sad [and wishes] the outcome had varied".

"I cannot even contest because my clients are absent; which is why I am disappointed," he stated further.

The previous week, the defense attorneys said they had lodged a prompt application to the UN highlighting significant due process and judicial process problems at the ICT.

The former leader faced trial alongside her previous domestic affairs official and security forces head.

While the sentence provides certain resolution to relatives of the deceased in the protests, it may not significantly ease the state's ideological splits.

"The resentment towards Sheikh Hasina and the Awami League has not decreased," a civil liberties campaigner in Dhaka told media outlets. "The leader and her faction has apologised or shown any remorse for the fatalities of countless citizens."

The activist stated "This creates challenges for the faction to gain approval by a most citizens in this nation."

The campaigner further stated that the penalty was not finality for the families of those who died and were wounded.

"We work with numerous persons who underwent irreversible limb loss, they are now disabled, 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 even more difficult" for her party to become a normal feature of the nation's political landscape again.

This may change if "a form of contrition emerges and a separation from Sheikh Hasina and the former hierarchy," he said.