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Bangladesh's former prime minister has been handed capital punishment for atrocities stemming from her crackdown on student-led protests which resulted in her forced departure.

Hasina was declared culpable of permitting fatal actions to be used against activists, with approximately 1,400 individuals lost their lives during the turmoil in the previous year.

The trial proceeded while she was absent by the special international tribunal in Bangladesh, since she went into exile in India since she was forced from power in July 2024.

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

This judgment represents a decisive point for Bangladesh, as the protests brought forth resentment over long-standing suppression. Families of those killed and wounded had requested tough penalties.

Reacting to the verdict in a five-page statement, the former leader stated the execution sentence was the caretaker administration's way of "eradicating the Awami League" as a political force and that she was satisfied of her administration's performance on human rights.

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

The capital, Dhaka, where the court convened, was under enhanced protection ahead of the decision on Monday, with many of Hasina's critics staging a rally and cheering as the judgment was announced.

The capital witnessed a sudden increase in unrest, with multiple explosives detonated and coaches ignited in the period preceding the verdict.

At least one bomb explosion was noted in Dhaka on Monday morning, with no victims identified, area law enforcement officer Jisanul Haque told media outlets.

The student-led uprising last year commenced through calls to eliminate public sector reservation policies but morphed into a broader opposition campaign.

United Nations rights examiners said in a report in February that the around 1,400 fatalities could represent "crimes against humanity".

The study recorded the shooting at point-blank range of a number of activists, the purposeful disabling of others, unwarranted detentions and torture.

Unauthorized recordings of a telephone conversation involving Hasina verified by media examinations during the current year implied she had sanctioned the use of "lethal weapons" in July 2024. The recording was presented in court during the proceedings.

Prior to the ruling, family members of those who died in the demonstrations stated to press outlets they wanted Hasina to be punished severely.

One relative, whose sibling was killed in July 2024, said he wanted "strict sentence" for the former leader and associates who have "committed acts of vengeance and abused their power".

Another relative, whose spouse died near Dhaka in August 2024, said she wanted her penalty to be "carried out 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 economic expert Muhammad Yunus has assumed power. A national vote is planned for February 2026.

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

Hasina warned last month that if the the League's representatives were prohibited from running in the upcoming election, numerous would avoid the vote.

This decision presents a international dilemma for both nations. Authorities have sought her return but to date India has expressed no readiness to agree.

The legal representative assigned to her her legal counsel said he was "disappointed and hoping the outcome had varied".

"I cannot even contest because my defendants are not present; which is why I am sad," he stated further.

The previous week, her legal team said they had filed an urgent appeal to the UN highlighting major judicial fairness and judicial process problems at the ICT.

Hasina was tried in conjunction with her former home minister and top law enforcement officer.

Although the punishment grants partial finality to relatives of the deceased in the protests, it may do little to soothe the state's ideological splits.

"The anger against the former leader and the the former ruling faction has not decreased," a human rights advocate from the capital stated to media outlets. "Neither she nor the party has expressed regret or shown any remorse for the deaths of numerous individuals."

The advocate declared "This creates challenges for the party to be accepted by a majority of people in this nation."

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

"We support several people who suffered permanent amputations, they are amputees now, as a result of the harsh measures. They cannot pardon her."

A journalist, a commentator on the nation's politics, said the "inherent character of the guilty verdict could make it increasingly challenging" for the political faction to become a regular participant of Bangladeshi politics again.

This could alter if "an expression of regret occurs and a disassociation with Sheikh Hasina and the former hierarchy," he stated.