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Bangladesh's former prime minister has been given a death sentence for crimes against humanity due to her crackdown on student-led protests which caused her ousting.

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

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

Legal authorities charged her of being behind hundreds of killings during the protests. The former leader rejected all charges, describing the process as "biased and politically motivated".

The decision signifies a decisive point for Bangladesh, as the protests unleashed anger over extended periods of oppression. Relatives of the deceased and injured had demanded severe punishments.

Reacting to the verdict in a detailed document, she expressed the death penalty was the interim government's way of "eradicating the Awami League" as a governing body and that she was satisfied of her administration's performance on civil liberties.

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

The capital, Dhaka, where the tribunal took place, was under tightened security prior to the ruling on Monday, with many of Hasina's critics organizing a demonstration and cheering as the judgment was announced.

Dhaka experienced a notable rise in disturbances, with multiple explosives detonated and buses set on fire in the days leading up to the verdict.

A minimum of one detonation was noted in Dhaka on Monday morning, with no victims identified, area law enforcement officer the police spokesperson stated to news organizations.

The youth-driven revolt during 2024 commenced through demands to abolish state employment quotas but transformed into a wider anti-government movement.

United Nations rights examiners stated in a document in February that the approximately 1,400 deaths could represent "human rights atrocities".

The paper detailed the firing at close quarters of a number of activists, the purposeful disabling of others, arbitrary arrests and mistreatment.

Unauthorized recordings of one of Hasina's phone calls confirmed by media examinations during the current year implied she had sanctioned the use of "deadly arms" in July 2024. The sound file was broadcast in court during the legal process.

Before the decision, kin of those fatally injured in the unrest informed press outlets they wanted the former leader to face strict penalties.

A family representative, whose brother was shot dead in July 2024, said he wanted "severe penalty" 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 Hasina's sentence to be "carried out before the election".

"Only then the kin of victims [in the protests] will obtain solace in their hearts."

Since Hasina's ousting, an interim government under the guidance of economic expert Muhammad Yunus has assumed control. A national vote is planned for February 2026.

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

She alerted during the past month that if the the League's representatives were barred from participating in the imminent electoral process, numerous would avoid the election.

The verdict now poses a foreign relations issue for the neighboring countries. Dhaka has formally requested her return but to date India has shown no willingness to acquiesce.

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

"I cannot even contest because my clients are absent; which is why I am disheartened," he continued.

Last week, Hasina's lawyers said they had submitted an immediate petition to the UN raising significant due process and due process issues at the ICT.

The former leader faced trial in conjunction with her ex-interior minister and security forces head.

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 fury directed at the former leader and the the former ruling faction has not subsided," a human rights advocate from the capital told press agencies. "The leader and her faction has said sorry or displayed repentance for the fatalities of countless citizens."

The advocate declared "This creates challenges for the organization to receive endorsement by a most citizens in this state."

The advocate continued that the penalty was not resolution for the families of those who died and were wounded.

"We support multiple individuals who underwent irreversible limb loss, they are currently without limbs, due to the crackdown. They will never be able to forgive her."

A journalist, a commentator on the nation's politics, said the "inherent character of the guilty verdict could make it even more difficult" for Awami League to become a normal feature of Bangladeshi politics again.

This might transform if "a form of contrition emerges and a disassociation with Hasina and the old leadership," he stated.