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The country's previous leader has been given a death sentence for crimes against humanity stemming from her severe measures on student-led protests which resulted in her removal from power.

Sheikh Hasina was found guilty of allowing lethal force to be used against activists, among whom around 1,400 people lost their lives during the unrest in the previous year.

Hasina was tried in absentia by the International Crimes Tribunal (ICT) 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 numerous deaths during the protests. She has refuted all charges, describing the process as "unfair and agenda-driven".

The decision signifies a decisive point for Bangladesh, as the protests brought forth resentment over long-standing suppression. Families of those killed and wounded had requested strict sentences.

Answering the judgment in a five-page statement, Hasina said the execution sentence was the caretaker administration's way of "eliminating her political faction" as a electoral entity and that she was satisfied of her leadership's history on civil liberties.

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

The capital, Dhaka, where the legal proceedings occurred, was under increased safeguards ahead of the decision on Monday, with several of her detractors holding a protest and celebrating as the verdict was read.

The city has seen a recent spike in unrest, with dozens of bombs exploded and buses set on fire in the period preceding the verdict.

A minimum of one detonation was noted in Dhaka on Monday morning, with no victims identified, local police official Jisanul Haque told news organizations.

The youth-driven revolt last year commenced through demands to abolish state employment quotas but transformed into a more extensive dissent initiative.

International human rights monitors stated in a document in February that the around 1,400 fatalities could amount to "violations of human dignity".

The study recorded the gunfire from minimal distance of certain demonstrators, the intentional injuring of others, unjustified apprehensions and abuse.

Disclosed sound files of a telephone conversation involving Hasina verified by investigative sources during the current year implied she had sanctioned the use of "fatal instruments" in July 2024. The recording was presented in court during the proceedings.

Ahead of the verdict, family members of those who died in the demonstrations informed news agencies they wanted the former leader to face strict penalties.

One relative, whose family member was fatally wounded in July 2024, said he wanted "exemplary punishment" for her and co-accused 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 the former leader's punishment to be "carried out before the election".

"Exclusively thereafter the kin of victims [in the protests] will obtain solace in their souls."

Following her removal, an interim government led by economist Muhammad Yunus has assumed power. A general election is scheduled for February 2026.

However, the Hasina's political party, her political faction, was prohibited by Bangladesh's caretaker administration in May.

The former leader cautioned last month that if the the League's representatives were prohibited from running in the imminent electoral process, numerous would avoid the ballot.

The judgment creates a international dilemma for the neighboring countries. Dhaka has formally requested her return but so far India has expressed no readiness to acquiesce.

The legal representative assigned to her the defense lawyer said he was "disappointed and hoping the outcome had varied".

"I cannot even contest because my defendants are not present; which is why I am sad," he added.

The previous week, her legal team said they had filed an urgent appeal to the UN raising serious fair trial and legal procedure concerns at the ICT.

The former leader faced trial in conjunction with her previous domestic affairs official and police chief.

Even though the verdict offers some closure to kin of victims in the protests, it may have minimal effect on calming the country's political divisions.

"The fury directed at Sheikh Hasina and the her political party has not subsided," a Dhaka-based rights activist stated to news organizations. "The leader and her faction has apologised or displayed repentance for the fatalities of countless citizens."

The advocate declared "It makes it difficult for the organization to receive endorsement by a most citizens in this nation."

The activist added that the penalty was not resolution for the kin of those killed and injured.

"We work with several people who lost their limbs forever, they are now disabled, because of the suppression. They will never be able to forgive her."

An analyst, a commentator on the nation's politics, said the "inherent character of the guilty verdict could make it particularly hard" for Awami League to become a standard element of the nation's political landscape again.

This may change if "a form of contrition emerges and a distancing from the former leader and the former hierarchy," he said.