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The ex-prime minister of Bangladesh has been handed capital punishment for crimes against humanity due to her harsh response on student-led protests which led to her forced departure.

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

Hasina was tried in absentia by the International Crimes Tribunal (ICT) in Bangladesh, since she went into exile in India after being removed from office in July 2024.

Legal authorities charged her of being the mastermind of numerous deaths during the protests. The former leader rejected all charges, calling the trial as "unfair and agenda-driven".

This judgment represents a critical juncture for Bangladesh, as the protests unleashed anger over long-standing suppression. Families of those killed and wounded had called for strict sentences.

Responding to the decision in a detailed document, Hasina said the execution sentence was the interim government's way of "eradicating the Awami League" as a political force and that she was content of her government's record on individual freedoms.

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

The nation's capital, Dhaka, where the court convened, was under increased safeguards before the decision on Monday, with several of her detractors organizing a demonstration and celebrating as the sentence was declared.

Dhaka experienced a recent spike in unrest, with dozens of bombs exploded 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, local police official the authorities' representative informed press agencies.

The protest movement led by students last year started with calls to eliminate public sector reservation policies but morphed into a wider anti-government movement.

UN human rights investigators declared in an analysis in February that the approximately 1,400 deaths could amount to "crimes against humanity".

The study recorded the gunfire from minimal distance of a number of activists, the deliberate maiming of additional individuals, arbitrary arrests and abuse.

Disclosed sound files of one of Hasina's phone calls confirmed by investigative sources during the current year implied she had sanctioned the use of "deadly arms" in July 2024. The recording was presented in court during the trial.

Ahead of the verdict, family members of those fatally injured in the unrest informed media representatives they wanted strict consequences for Hasina.

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

Lucky Akther, whose spouse died near Dhaka in August 2024, said she wanted the former leader's punishment to be "carried out before the election".

"Only then the families of those killed [in the protests] will obtain solace in their minds."

Following her removal, an interim government under the guidance of economic expert Muhammad Yunus has assumed control. A parliamentary election is planned for February 2026.

Nonetheless, the her former political organization, her political faction, was outlawed by Bangladesh's caretaker administration in May.

Hasina warned during the past month that if the party's candidates were prohibited from running in the forthcoming vote, countless would abstain the vote.

The verdict now poses a diplomatic challenge for both nations. Authorities have sought her return but so far India has expressed no readiness to comply.

The legal representative assigned to her Mohammad Amir Hossain said he was "unhappy and desiring the verdict had been different".

"I am unable to challenge because my defendants are not present; that's why I am disappointed," he continued.

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

Legal proceedings involved Hasina in conjunction with her ex-interior minister and top law enforcement officer.

Even though the verdict provides certain resolution to relatives of the deceased in the protests, it may have minimal effect on calming the state's ideological splits.

"The fury directed at Sheikh Hasina and the her political party has not subsided," a Dhaka-based rights activist informed news organizations. "Both she and the organization has expressed regret or shown any remorse for the deaths of numerous individuals."

The advocate declared "It makes it difficult for the organization to receive endorsement by a majority of people in this state."

The advocate continued that the sentence was not resolution for the kin of those killed and injured.

"We support multiple individuals who suffered permanent amputations, they are currently without limbs, as a result of the harsh measures. They will never be able to forgive her."

David Bergman, a commentator on the nation's politics, said the "inherent character of the guilty verdict 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 "there is some kind of apology and a separation from Sheikh Hasina and the old leadership," he said.