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The country's previous leader has been given a death sentence for crimes against humanity due to her severe measures on youth demonstrations which caused her forced departure.

Hasina was declared culpable of allowing lethal force to be used against protesters, among whom around 1,400 people were killed during the turmoil last year.

Legal proceedings were conducted in absentia by the special international tribunal in Bangladesh, having been exiled in India since she was forced from power in July 2024.

Legal authorities charged her 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 critical juncture for Bangladesh, as the protests revealed fury over long-standing suppression. Families of those killed and injured had requested strict sentences.

Reacting to the verdict in a comprehensive declaration, she expressed the capital punishment was the temporary leadership's way of "nullifying [her party] the Awami League" as a governing body and that she was content of her government's record on human rights.

"I have no trepidation to confront those accusing me in a just legal forum where the facts can be assessed and examined justly."

The nation's capital, Dhaka, where the tribunal took place, was under increased safeguards prior to the ruling on Monday, with many of Hasina's critics organizing a demonstration and celebrating as the verdict was read.

The city has seen a recent spike in unrest, with numerous incendiary devices set off and buses set on fire in the period preceding the verdict.

One explosive incident was noted in Dhaka on Monday morning, with zero injuries documented, regional security representative Jisanul Haque told media outlets.

The protest movement led by students during 2024 started with calls to eliminate government job quotas but morphed into a wider anti-government movement.

United Nations rights examiners said in a report in February that the approximately 1,400 deaths could represent "crimes against humanity".

The report documented the shooting at point-blank range of some protesters, the intentional injuring of further participants, arbitrary arrests and mistreatment.

Unauthorized recordings of one of Hasina's phone calls authenticated by investigative sources during the current year implied she had sanctioned the use of "lethal weapons" in July 2024. The sound file was broadcast in court during the proceedings.

Before the decision, family members of those killed during the protests informed media representatives they wanted strict consequences for Hasina.

One relative, whose family member was fatally wounded in July 2024, said he wanted "exemplary punishment" for the former leader and associates who have "engaged in retaliatory actions and exploited their positions".

Lucky Akther, whose husband was killed near Dhaka in August 2024, said she wanted her penalty to be "executed before the election".

"Exclusively thereafter the kin of victims [in the protests] will find peace in their souls."

Since Hasina's ousting, an caretaker administration headed by economic expert Muhammad Yunus has assumed control. A parliamentary election is set for February 2026.

Nonetheless, the Hasina's political party, Hasina's political party, was banned by Bangladesh's interim government in May.

She alerted during the past month that if the party's candidates were banned from standing in the upcoming election, numerous would avoid the ballot.

The verdict now poses a diplomatic challenge for both nations. Authorities have sought her repatriation but so far India has demonstrated no inclination to comply.

The legal representative assigned to her her legal counsel said he was "sad [and wishes] the decision had been otherwise".

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

Last week, Hasina's lawyers said they had lodged a prompt application to the UN pointing out major judicial fairness and judicial process problems at the ICT.

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

While the sentence grants partial finality to relatives of the deceased in the protests, it may have minimal effect on calming the state's ideological splits.

"The fury directed at Sheikh Hasina and the the former ruling faction has not subsided," a civil liberties campaigner in Dhaka informed news organizations. "Neither she nor the party has said sorry or demonstrated contrition for the fatalities of countless citizens."

The activist stated "It makes it difficult for the party to be accepted by a most citizens in this state."

The activist added that the sentence was not closure for the relatives of those who died and were wounded.

"We work with multiple individuals who lost their limbs forever, they are now disabled, because of the suppression. They are incapable of excusing her."

An analyst, a commentator on the nation's politics, said the "fundamental aspect of the condemnation 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 said.