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Bangladesh's former prime minister has been sentenced to death for crimes against humanity stemming from her severe measures on protests led by students which caused her ousting.

Sheikh Hasina was found guilty of permitting fatal actions to be used against protesters, 1,400 of whom died during the disturbances last year.

The trial proceeded in absentia by the International Crimes Tribunal (ICT) in Bangladesh, having been exiled in India following her ouster in July 2024.

Prosecutors accused her of being behind multiple fatalities during the protests. The former leader rejected all charges, labeling the proceedings as "prejudiced and driven by politics".

The verdict marks a critical juncture for Bangladesh, as the protests revealed fury over long-standing suppression. Families of those killed and injured had called for tough penalties.

Reacting to the verdict in a five-page statement, she expressed the execution sentence was the temporary leadership's way of "nullifying [her party] the Awami League" as a governing body and that she was satisfied of her administration's performance on individual freedoms.

"I have no trepidation to face my accusers in a fair court where the evidence can be weighed and reviewed impartially."

The capital, Dhaka, where the tribunal took place, was under tightened security before the ruling on Monday, with numerous opponents of Hasina organizing a demonstration and cheering as the judgment was announced.

The city has seen a sudden increase in turmoil, with dozens of bombs exploded and coaches ignited in the days leading up to the verdict.

At least one bomb explosion was noted in Dhaka on Monday morning, with no casualties reported, local police official the police spokesperson stated to news organizations.

The student-led uprising in the previous year began with calls to eliminate government job quotas but morphed into a more extensive dissent initiative.

United Nations rights examiners stated in a document in February that the approximately 1,400 deaths could amount to "violations of human dignity".

The report documented the gunfire from minimal distance of some protesters, the intentional injuring of others, arbitrary arrests and torture.

Disclosed sound files of a telephone conversation involving Hasina verified by external reviews during the current year indicated she had authorized the use of "deadly arms" in July 2024. The sound file was broadcast in court during the proceedings.

Prior to the ruling, relatives of those fatally injured in the unrest informed press outlets they wanted the former leader to face strict penalties.

Ramjan Ali, whose sibling was killed in July 2024, said he wanted "exemplary punishment" for Hasina and others who have "engaged in retaliatory actions and misused their authority".

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

"Only then the kin of victims [in the protests] will find peace in their hearts."

After her departure, an caretaker administration headed by economic expert Muhammad Yunus has assumed control. A general election is planned for February 2026.

Nevertheless, the Hasina's political party, her political faction, was outlawed by Bangladesh's temporary leadership in May.

She alerted in the previous month that if the the League's representatives were banned from standing in the upcoming election, countless would abstain the vote.

The verdict now poses a foreign relations issue for the neighboring countries. Dhaka has formally requested her extradition but until now India has expressed no readiness to comply.

Her officially designated attorney her legal counsel said he was "disappointed and hoping the decision had been otherwise".

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

The previous week, her legal team said they had filed an urgent appeal to the UN raising significant due process and legal procedure concerns at the ICT.

Hasina was tried together with her ex-interior minister and security forces head.

Even though the verdict provides certain resolution to relatives of the deceased in the protests, it may not significantly ease the country's political divisions.

"The fury directed at 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 advocate declared "This complicates matters for the faction to gain approval by a bulk of the population in this country."

The activist added that the punishment was not closure for the kin of those fatally and non-fatally harmed.

"We work with multiple individuals who suffered permanent amputations, they are now disabled, due to the crackdown. They are incapable of excusing her."

David Bergman, a commentator on the nation's politics, said the "very nature of the conviction could make it particularly hard" for Awami League to become a normal feature of the country's governance system again.

This could alter if "an expression of regret occurs and a separation from Sheikh Hasina and the previous administration," he expressed.