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

Hasina was declared culpable of allowing lethal force to be used against protesters, 1,400 of whom died during the disturbances in the previous year.

Hasina was tried in absentia 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 responsible for multiple fatalities during the protests. The former leader rejected every accusation, labeling the proceedings as "prejudiced and driven by politics".

The decision signifies a critical juncture for Bangladesh, as the protests unleashed anger over years of repression. Relatives of the deceased and harmed had called for severe punishments.

Responding to the decision in a comprehensive declaration, the former leader stated the death penalty was the caretaker administration's way of "eliminating her political faction" as a governing body and that she was content of her government's record on individual freedoms.

"I do not fear to confront those accusing me in a just legal forum where the evidence can be weighed and examined justly."

The capital, Dhaka, where the court convened, was under enhanced protection prior to the ruling on Monday, with many of Hasina's critics holding a protest and cheering as the sentence was declared.

Dhaka experienced a sudden increase in disturbances, with numerous incendiary devices set off and coaches ignited in the period preceding the verdict.

At least one bomb explosion was reported in Dhaka on Monday morning, with no victims identified, regional security representative the police spokesperson informed press agencies.

The protest movement led by students in the previous year commenced through requests to remove public sector reservation policies but transformed into a wider anti-government movement.

UN human rights investigators stated in a document in February that the approximately 1,400 deaths could amount to "crimes against humanity".

The paper detailed the gunfire from minimal distance of some protesters, the deliberate maiming of others, arbitrary arrests and mistreatment.

Unauthorized recordings of a call made by the former leader authenticated by media examinations during the current year suggested she had sanctioned the use of "fatal instruments" 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 stated to media representatives they wanted the former leader to face strict penalties.

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

A different family member, whose partner was fatally injured near Dhaka in August 2024, said she wanted her penalty to be "carried out before the election".

"Exclusively thereafter the families of those killed [in the protests] will achieve closure in their hearts."

Since Hasina's ousting, an interim government under the guidance of economist Muhammad Yunus has taken charge. A parliamentary election is scheduled for February 2026.

However, the Awami League, her political faction, was outlawed by Bangladesh's temporary leadership in May.

She alerted during the past month that if the her faction's nominees were banned from standing in the imminent electoral process, countless would abstain the ballot.

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

Her officially designated attorney the defense lawyer said he was "sad [and wishes] the decision had been otherwise".

"I cannot even contest because my clients are absent; for that reason I am disheartened," he stated further.

Last week, Hasina's lawyers said they had lodged a prompt application to the UN pointing out serious fair trial and due process issues at the ICT.

Hasina was tried alongside her ex-interior minister and police chief.

Even though the verdict grants partial finality to families of killed in the protests, it may not significantly ease the nation's partisan rifts.

"The fury directed at Sheikh Hasina and the Awami League has not decreased," a Dhaka-based rights activist stated to media outlets. "Both she and the organization has said sorry or displayed repentance for the deaths of numerous individuals."

She said "It makes it difficult for the organization to receive endorsement by a most citizens in this country."

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

"We support several people who underwent irreversible limb loss, they are currently without limbs, as a result of the harsh measures. They cannot pardon her."

An analyst, an observer of Bangladeshi affairs, said the "fundamental aspect of the condemnation could make it particularly hard" for the political faction to become a standard element of Bangladeshi politics again.

This might transform if "an expression of regret occurs and a disassociation with Sheikh Hasina and the former hierarchy," he expressed.