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Bangladesh's former prime minister has been handed capital punishment for atrocities over her crackdown on student-led protests which resulted in her forced departure.

The court convicted Sheikh Hasina of permitting fatal actions to be used against activists, among whom around 1,400 people lost their lives during the disturbances during 2024.

Legal proceedings were conducted in absentia by the International Crimes Court in Bangladesh, having been exiled in India after being removed from office in July 2024.

The prosecution alleged of being behind numerous deaths during the protests. Hasina has denied every accusation, calling the trial as "biased and politically motivated".

This judgment represents a critical juncture for Bangladesh, as the protests unleashed anger over years of repression. Relatives of the deceased and wounded had requested severe punishments.

Responding to the decision in a five-page statement, Hasina said the execution sentence was the caretaker administration's way of "nullifying [her party] the Awami League" as a governing body and that she was proud of her government's record on individual freedoms.

"I do not fear to face my accusers in a proper tribunal where the proof can be evaluated and tested fairly."

Bangladesh's main city, Dhaka, where the legal proceedings occurred, was under tightened security ahead of the verdict on Monday, with several of her detractors organizing a demonstration and cheering as the sentence was declared.

Dhaka experienced a recent spike in turmoil, with dozens of bombs exploded and coaches ignited in the time before the verdict.

A minimum of one detonation was recorded in Dhaka on Monday morning, with no casualties reported, area law enforcement officer Jisanul Haque told news organizations.

The protest movement led by students in the previous year commenced through requests to remove state employment quotas but transformed into a more extensive dissent initiative.

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

The study recorded the gunfire from minimal distance of certain demonstrators, the intentional injuring of further participants, unwarranted detentions and torture.

Disclosed sound files of one of Hasina's phone calls authenticated by external reviews earlier this year indicated she had authorized the use of "fatal instruments" in July 2024. The recording was presented in court during the proceedings.

Prior to the ruling, relatives of those fatally injured in the unrest stated to news agencies they wanted strict consequences for Hasina.

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

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".

"Solely at that point the relatives of the deceased [in the protests] will obtain solace in their hearts."

After her departure, an caretaker administration under the guidance of Nobel laureate Muhammad Yunus has assumed control. A national vote is set for February 2026.

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

The former leader cautioned in the previous month that if the party's candidates were barred from participating in the imminent electoral process, millions would boycott the ballot.

The verdict now poses a international dilemma for both nations. Dhaka has formally requested her return but so far India has demonstrated no inclination to agree.

Her officially designated attorney the defense lawyer said he was "unhappy and desiring the outcome had varied".

"I cannot even contest because my defendants are not present; for that reason I am disheartened," he added.

The previous week, Hasina's lawyers said they had lodged a prompt application to the UN raising significant due process and judicial process problems at the ICT.

Legal proceedings involved Hasina in conjunction with her previous domestic affairs official and security forces head.

Even though the verdict offers some closure to families of killed in the protests, it may not significantly ease the country's political divisions.

"The fury directed at Sheikh Hasina and the her political party has not diminished," a Dhaka-based rights activist stated to news organizations. "Neither she nor the party has expressed regret or displayed repentance for the fatalities of countless citizens."

The advocate declared "This creates challenges for the organization to receive endorsement by a bulk of the population in this country."

The activist added that the punishment was not resolution for the relatives of those killed and injured.

"We assist numerous persons who lost their limbs forever, they are amputees now, because of the suppression. They are incapable of excusing her."

A journalist, an observer of Bangladeshi affairs, said the "inherent character of the guilty verdict could make it particularly hard" for her party to become a standard element of Bangladeshi politics again.

This could alter if "a form of contrition emerges and a distancing from Sheikh Hasina and the old leadership," he expressed.