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The ex-prime minister of Bangladesh has been handed capital punishment for crimes against humanity due to her severe measures on protests led by students which resulted in her ousting.

Hasina was declared culpable of allowing lethal force to be used against demonstrators, 1,400 of whom died during the turmoil last year.

Legal proceedings were conducted without her presence by the International Crimes Tribunal (ICT) in Bangladesh, as she resides in exile in India after being removed from office in July 2024.

Prosecutors accused her of being behind multiple fatalities during the protests. The former leader rejected all charges, describing the process as "biased and politically motivated".

The verdict marks a critical juncture for Bangladesh, as the protests unleashed anger over years of repression. Families of those killed and wounded had demanded strict sentences.

Answering the judgment in a five-page statement, she expressed the capital punishment was the caretaker administration's way of "eliminating her political faction" as a political force and that she was proud of her leadership's history on individual freedoms.

"I do not fear to meet my challengers in a proper tribunal where the proof can be evaluated and examined justly."

The capital, Dhaka, where the legal proceedings occurred, was under increased safeguards before the decision on Monday, with numerous opponents of Hasina holding a protest and applauding as the judgment was announced.

The city has seen a recent spike in turmoil, with dozens of bombs exploded and buses set on fire in the time before the verdict.

At least one bomb explosion was noted in Dhaka on Monday morning, with no victims identified, local police official the police spokesperson stated to media outlets.

The student-led uprising last year started with demands to abolish public sector reservation policies but transformed into a more extensive dissent initiative.

International human rights monitors said in a report in February that the around 1,400 fatalities could constitute "violations of human dignity".

The paper detailed the gunfire from minimal distance of some protesters, the intentional injuring of additional individuals, arbitrary arrests and abuse.

Unauthorized recordings of a telephone conversation involving Hasina authenticated by media examinations earlier this year indicated she had sanctioned the use of "deadly arms" in July 2024. The recording was presented in court during the trial.

Prior to the ruling, relatives of those who died in the demonstrations told media representatives they wanted the former leader to face strict penalties.

Ramjan Ali, whose sibling was killed in July 2024, said he wanted "exemplary punishment" for her and co-accused who have "engaged in retaliatory actions and exploited their positions".

A different family member, whose spouse died near Dhaka in August 2024, said she wanted Hasina's sentence to be "implemented before the election".

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

After her departure, an interim government led by Nobel laureate Muhammad Yunus has assumed power. A national vote is scheduled for February 2026.

Nonetheless, the her former political organization, the former ruling party, was banned by Bangladesh's interim government in May.

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

The judgment creates a foreign relations issue for both nations. The Bangladesh government has asked her return but so far India has demonstrated no inclination to acquiesce.

Her officially designated attorney the defense lawyer said he was "unhappy and desiring the decision had been otherwise".

"I cannot even contest because my clients are absent; that's why I am sad," he continued.

The previous week, the defense attorneys said they had filed an urgent appeal to the UN highlighting significant due process and due process issues at the ICT.

Legal proceedings involved Hasina in conjunction with her ex-interior minister and police chief.

While the sentence grants partial finality to families of killed in the protests, it may do little to soothe the nation's partisan rifts.

"The anger against Hasina and the Awami League has not decreased," a human rights advocate from the capital stated to press agencies. "The leader and her faction has expressed regret or demonstrated contrition for the killings of hundreds of people."

The activist stated "This creates challenges for the organization to receive endorsement by a majority of people in this nation."

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

"We assist numerous persons who lost their limbs forever, they are amputees now, due to the crackdown. They will never be able to forgive her."

David Bergman, a journalist and a long-time Bangladesh watcher, said the "very nature of the conviction could make it increasingly challenging" for Awami League to become a standard element of the nation's political landscape again.

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