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The country's previous leader has been handed capital punishment for human rights violations stemming from her harsh response on protests led by students which led to her removal from power.

The court convicted Sheikh Hasina of authorizing deadly measures to be used against protesters, 1,400 of whom lost their lives during the unrest last year.

Legal proceedings were conducted 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 responsible for numerous deaths during the protests. The former leader rejected every accusation, calling the trial as "prejudiced and driven by politics".

This judgment represents a pivotal moment for Bangladesh, as the protests revealed fury over long-standing suppression. Families of those killed and harmed had called for strict sentences.

Answering the judgment in a comprehensive declaration, the former leader stated the execution sentence was the caretaker administration's way of "eradicating the Awami League" as a electoral entity and that she was content of her administration's performance on individual freedoms.

"I have no trepidation to meet my challengers in a fair court where the evidence can be weighed and examined justly."

Bangladesh's main city, Dhaka, where the court convened, was under enhanced protection before the ruling on Monday, with numerous opponents of Hasina holding a protest and celebrating as the verdict was read.

Dhaka experienced a sudden increase in turmoil, with multiple explosives detonated and coaches ignited in the days leading up to the verdict.

A minimum of one detonation was noted in Dhaka on Monday morning, with no victims identified, local police official Jisanul Haque informed media outlets.

The protest movement led by students last year commenced through demands to abolish state employment quotas but morphed into a wider anti-government movement.

United Nations rights examiners stated in a document in February that the around 1,400 fatalities could constitute "violations of human dignity".

The paper detailed the gunfire from minimal distance of a number of activists, the intentional injuring of further participants, unwarranted detentions and abuse.

Leaked audio of a call made by the former leader confirmed by media examinations in previous months implied she had authorized the use of "lethal weapons" in July 2024. The sound file was broadcast in court during the trial.

Prior to the ruling, kin of those who died in the demonstrations told news agencies they wanted strict consequences for Hasina.

One relative, whose sibling was killed in July 2024, said he wanted "strict sentence" for the former leader and associates who have "performed revengeful deeds and exploited their positions".

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

"Exclusively thereafter the families of those killed [in the protests] will find peace in their souls."

After her departure, an temporary leadership headed by economic expert Muhammad Yunus has assumed control. A parliamentary election is planned for February 2026.

Nonetheless, the Hasina's political party, Hasina's political party, was banned by Bangladesh's caretaker administration in May.

She alerted during the past month that if the her faction's nominees were prohibited from running in the upcoming election, countless would abstain the vote.

The judgment creates a diplomatic challenge for India and Bangladesh. Authorities have sought her repatriation but so far India has shown no willingness to acquiesce.

Hasina's state-appointed lawyer Mohammad Amir Hossain said he was "disappointed and hoping the decision had been otherwise".

"I even cannot appeal because my clients are absent; which is why I am disappointed," he added.

Last week, her legal team said they had filed an urgent appeal to the UN pointing out major judicial fairness and judicial process problems at the ICT.

Hasina was tried together with her previous domestic affairs official and security forces head.

Although the punishment offers some closure to kin of victims in the protests, it may not significantly ease the nation's partisan rifts.

"The resentment towards the former leader and the her political party has not subsided," a civil liberties campaigner in Dhaka told media outlets. "Both she and the organization has expressed regret or displayed repentance for the killings of hundreds of people."

The activist stated "This complicates matters for the faction to gain approval by a most citizens in this nation."

The advocate continued that the punishment was not closure for the families of those fatally and non-fatally harmed.

"We support several people who suffered permanent amputations, they are amputees now, as a result of the harsh measures. They are incapable of excusing her."

David Bergman, a journalist and a long-time Bangladesh watcher, said the "inherent character of the guilty verdict could make it even more difficult" for her party to become a normal feature of Bangladeshi politics again.

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