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The ex-prime minister of Bangladesh has been given a death sentence for human rights violations stemming from her severe measures on student-led protests which led to her forced departure.

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

Hasina was tried while she was absent by the International Crimes Tribunal (ICT) in Bangladesh, having been exiled in India after being removed from office in July 2024.

The prosecution alleged of being the mastermind of hundreds of killings during the protests. The former leader rejected all charges, labeling the proceedings as "prejudiced and driven by politics".

The decision signifies a critical juncture for Bangladesh, as the protests unleashed anger over long-standing suppression. Next of kin of victims and injured had called for severe punishments.

Responding to the decision in a detailed document, Hasina said the capital punishment was the temporary leadership's way of "eliminating her political faction" as a governing body and that she was content of her administration's performance on civil liberties.

"I have no trepidation to face my accusers in a fair court where the proof can be evaluated and examined justly."

Bangladesh's main city, Dhaka, where the court convened, was under tightened security ahead of the verdict on Monday, with numerous opponents of Hasina staging a rally and celebrating as the verdict was read.

Dhaka experienced a sudden increase in disturbances, with multiple explosives detonated and buses set on fire in the days leading up to the verdict.

At least one bomb explosion was noted in Dhaka on Monday morning, with no casualties reported, area law enforcement officer the authorities' representative told news organizations.

The student-led uprising during 2024 started with demands to abolish government job quotas 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 amount to "crimes against humanity".

The study recorded the firing at close quarters of certain demonstrators, the deliberate maiming of additional individuals, unwarranted detentions and mistreatment.

Leaked audio of a call made by the former leader authenticated by investigative sources earlier this year implied she had authorized the use of "deadly arms" in July 2024. The audio was played in court during the trial.

Before the decision, family members of those fatally injured in the unrest told news agencies they wanted strict consequences for Hasina.

A family representative, whose sibling was killed in July 2024, said he wanted "strict sentence" for Hasina and others who have "committed acts of vengeance and abused their power".

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

"Only then the relatives of the deceased [in the protests] will achieve closure in their minds."

Since Hasina's ousting, an interim government under the guidance of economist Muhammad Yunus has assumed power. A general election is set for February 2026.

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

She alerted last month that if the her faction's nominees were prohibited from running in the upcoming election, millions would boycott the ballot.

This decision presents a foreign relations issue for both nations. The Bangladesh government has asked her repatriation but to date India has demonstrated no inclination to acquiesce.

The legal representative assigned to her Mohammad Amir Hossain said he was "unhappy and desiring the decision had been otherwise".

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

Recently, the defense attorneys said they had submitted an immediate petition to the UN highlighting significant due process and legal procedure concerns at the ICT.

The former leader faced trial together with her ex-interior minister and top law enforcement officer.

Even though the verdict offers some closure to kin of victims in the protests, it may not significantly ease the state's ideological splits.

"The fury directed at Hasina and the the former ruling faction has not diminished," a civil liberties campaigner in Dhaka stated to press agencies. "The leader and her faction has expressed regret or demonstrated contrition for the killings of hundreds of people."

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

The activist added that the sentence was not finality for the kin of those fatally and non-fatally harmed.

"We work with several people who underwent irreversible limb loss, they are amputees now, due to the crackdown. They cannot pardon her."

A journalist, a commentator on the nation's politics, 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 "a form of contrition emerges and a disassociation with Sheikh Hasina and the old leadership," he stated.