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The country's previous leader has been given a death sentence for human rights violations over her harsh response on protests led by students which caused her removal from power.

The court convicted Sheikh Hasina of permitting fatal actions to be used against protesters, with approximately 1,400 individuals were killed during the disturbances last year.

The trial proceeded in absentia by the International Crimes Tribunal (ICT) in Bangladesh, having been exiled in India since she was forced from power in July 2024.

Prosecutors accused her of being the mastermind of multiple fatalities during the protests. The former leader rejected the entire case, calling the trial as "prejudiced and driven by politics".

This judgment represents a critical juncture for Bangladesh, as the protests brought forth resentment over years of repression. Families of those killed and harmed had called for severe punishments.

Answering the judgment in a detailed document, 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 leadership's history on human rights.

"I am not afraid to confront those accusing me in a fair court where the evidence can be weighed and examined justly."

The nation's capital, Dhaka, where the court convened, was under enhanced protection ahead of the decision on Monday, with numerous opponents of Hasina holding a protest and cheering as the sentence was declared.

The city has seen a sudden increase in turmoil, with multiple explosives detonated and buses set on fire in the time before the verdict.

A minimum of one detonation was noted in Dhaka on Monday morning, with zero injuries documented, area law enforcement officer the authorities' representative told press agencies.

The youth-driven revolt in the previous year started with demands to abolish public sector reservation policies but evolved into a wider anti-government movement.

International human rights monitors stated in a document in February that the approximately 1,400 deaths could amount to "human rights atrocities".

The study recorded the gunfire from minimal distance of a number of activists, the intentional injuring of additional individuals, arbitrary arrests and mistreatment.

Disclosed sound files of a call made by the former leader authenticated by investigative sources in previous months implied she had authorized the use of "lethal weapons" in July 2024. The audio was played in court during the legal process.

Before the decision, family members of those fatally injured in the unrest stated to media representatives they wanted Hasina to be punished severely.

A family representative, whose family member was fatally wounded in July 2024, said he wanted "strict sentence" for her and co-accused 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 "implemented before the election".

"Solely at that point the relatives of the deceased [in the protests] will achieve closure in their souls."

Since Hasina's ousting, an interim government under the guidance of economist Muhammad Yunus has taken charge. A parliamentary election is scheduled for February 2026.

Nonetheless, the Awami League, Hasina's political party, was outlawed by Bangladesh's temporary leadership in May.

Hasina warned in the previous month that if the the League's representatives were barred from participating in the forthcoming vote, numerous would avoid the vote.

The judgment creates a foreign relations issue for the neighboring countries. Authorities have sought her return but so far India has shown no willingness to acquiesce.

The legal representative assigned to her the defense lawyer said he was "sad [and wishes] the verdict had been different".

"I cannot even contest because my defendants are not present; that's why I am disappointed," he added.

The previous week, Hasina's lawyers said they had lodged a prompt application to the UN raising major judicial fairness and judicial process problems at the ICT.

Legal proceedings involved Hasina alongside her previous domestic affairs official and security forces head.

While the sentence grants partial finality to relatives of the deceased in the protests, it may do little to soothe the nation's partisan rifts.

"The resentment towards Hasina and the her political party has not decreased," a Dhaka-based rights activist told media outlets. "Both she and the organization has expressed regret or shown any remorse for the fatalities of countless citizens."

The advocate declared "This creates challenges for the faction to gain approval by a bulk of the population in this country."

The activist added that the penalty was not closure for the relatives of those who died and were wounded.

"We work with numerous persons who lost their limbs forever, they are now disabled, as a result of the harsh measures. They cannot pardon her."

An analyst, a journalist and a long-time Bangladesh watcher, said the "fundamental aspect of the condemnation could make it particularly hard" for the political faction to become a standard element of the nation's political landscape again.

This may change if "a form of contrition emerges and a disassociation with Hasina and the previous administration," he expressed.