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The ex-prime minister of Bangladesh has been given a death sentence for human rights violations over her crackdown on student-led protests which caused her forced departure.

Sheikh Hasina was found guilty of authorizing deadly measures to be used against demonstrators, with approximately 1,400 individuals were killed during the unrest last year.

Hasina was tried in absentia by the International Crimes Tribunal (ICT) in Bangladesh, as she resides in exile in India since she was forced from power in July 2024.

The prosecution alleged of being the mastermind of hundreds of killings during the protests. The former leader rejected all charges, describing the process as "prejudiced and driven by politics".

The decision signifies a critical juncture for Bangladesh, as the protests revealed fury over years of repression. Families of those killed and wounded had demanded strict sentences.

Reacting to the verdict in a five-page statement, Hasina said the death penalty was the caretaker administration's way of "nullifying [her party] the Awami League" as a political force and that she was content of her administration's performance on individual freedoms.

"I do not fear to face my accusers in a proper tribunal where the facts can be assessed and tested fairly."

The capital, Dhaka, where the legal proceedings occurred, was under enhanced protection before the ruling on Monday, with several of her detractors organizing a demonstration and celebrating as the verdict was read.

Dhaka experienced a recent spike in unrest, with multiple explosives detonated and coaches ignited in the period preceding the verdict.

A minimum of one detonation was noted in Dhaka on Monday morning, with no casualties reported, local police official the authorities' representative told press agencies.

The protest movement led by students during 2024 started with demands to abolish government job quotas but evolved into a broader opposition campaign.

United Nations rights examiners declared in an analysis in February that the approximately 1,400 deaths could represent "crimes against humanity".

The report documented the gunfire from minimal distance of a number of activists, the deliberate maiming of further participants, unwarranted detentions and mistreatment.

Leaked audio of one of Hasina's phone calls authenticated by external reviews in previous months suggested she had approved the use of "lethal weapons" in July 2024. The recording was presented in court during the proceedings.

Before the decision, kin of those fatally injured in the unrest stated to news agencies they wanted Hasina to be punished severely.

One relative, whose brother was shot dead in July 2024, said he wanted "strict sentence" for the former leader and associates who have "engaged in retaliatory actions and misused their authority".

Another relative, whose partner was fatally injured near Dhaka in August 2024, said she wanted Hasina's sentence to be "carried out before the election".

"Only then the kin of victims [in the protests] will achieve closure in their hearts."

Following her removal, an temporary leadership led by economic expert Muhammad Yunus has taken charge. A parliamentary election is scheduled for February 2026.

Nevertheless, the Hasina's political party, her political faction, was banned by Bangladesh's interim government in May.

Hasina warned in the previous month that if the her faction's nominees were banned from standing in the imminent electoral process, millions would boycott the election.

The verdict now poses a international dilemma for the neighboring countries. Dhaka has formally requested her extradition but so far India has demonstrated no inclination to acquiesce.

Her officially designated attorney her legal counsel said he was "sad [and wishes] the outcome had varied".

"I even cannot appeal because my clients are absent; for that reason I am sad," he added.

The previous week, her legal team said they had submitted an immediate petition to the UN raising major judicial fairness and due process issues at the ICT.

The former leader faced trial alongside her ex-interior minister and top law enforcement officer.

Even though the verdict offers some closure to families of killed in the protests, it may do little to soothe the state's ideological splits.

"The anger against the former leader and the her political party has not subsided," a human rights advocate from the capital told press agencies. "The leader and her faction has apologised or demonstrated contrition for the deaths of numerous individuals."

The advocate declared "It makes it difficult for the party to be accepted by a bulk of the population in this nation."

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

"We support numerous persons who suffered permanent amputations, they are now disabled, because of the suppression. They are incapable of excusing her."

David Bergman, a journalist and a long-time Bangladesh watcher, said the "fundamental aspect of the condemnation could make it increasingly challenging" for the political faction to become a regular participant of Bangladeshi politics again.

This could alter if "a form of contrition emerges and a distancing from Sheikh Hasina and the former hierarchy," he stated.