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The country's previous leader has been handed capital punishment for crimes against humanity due to her crackdown on protests led by students which resulted in her forced departure.

Sheikh Hasina was found guilty of authorizing deadly measures to be used against activists, among whom around 1,400 people lost their lives during the turmoil during 2024.

Hasina was tried 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 the mastermind of numerous deaths during the protests. Hasina has denied every accusation, calling the trial as "unfair and agenda-driven".

This judgment represents a decisive point for Bangladesh, as the protests revealed fury over extended periods of oppression. Next of kin of victims and harmed had demanded strict sentences.

Responding to the decision in a detailed document, she expressed the death penalty was the temporary leadership's way of "eliminating her political faction" as a political force and that she was satisfied of her government's record on civil liberties.

"I have no trepidation to meet my challengers in a just legal forum where the proof can be evaluated and examined justly."

The capital, Dhaka, where the court convened, was under enhanced protection prior to the decision on Monday, with numerous opponents of Hasina staging a rally and celebrating as the judgment was announced.

Dhaka experienced a notable rise in turmoil, with multiple explosives detonated and public transport vehicles burned in the period preceding the verdict.

One explosive incident was noted in Dhaka on Monday morning, with zero injuries documented, area law enforcement officer the authorities' representative stated to press agencies.

The protest movement led by students last year started with demands to abolish government job quotas but evolved into a broader opposition campaign.

UN human rights investigators stated in a document in February that the nearly 1,400 casualties could constitute "human rights atrocities".

The report documented the firing at close quarters of a number of activists, the intentional injuring of additional individuals, unwarranted detentions and mistreatment.

Leaked audio of one of Hasina's phone calls authenticated by media examinations in previous months implied she had sanctioned the use of "fatal instruments" in July 2024. The audio was played in court during the proceedings.

Before the decision, family members of those who died in the demonstrations informed media representatives they wanted Hasina to be punished severely.

A family representative, whose brother was shot dead in July 2024, said he wanted "severe penalty" for Hasina and others who have "engaged in retaliatory actions and misused their authority".

A different family member, whose husband was killed near Dhaka in August 2024, said she wanted her penalty to be "executed before the election".

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

Since Hasina's ousting, an temporary leadership led by economist Muhammad Yunus has taken charge. A national vote is set for February 2026.

However, the her former political organization, her political faction, was banned by Bangladesh's temporary leadership in May.

Hasina warned last month that if the the League's representatives were barred from participating in the upcoming election, countless would abstain the ballot.

This decision presents a international dilemma for both nations. Authorities have sought her repatriation but until now India has expressed no readiness to agree.

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

"I am unable to challenge because my clients are absent; that's why I am disheartened," he added.

The previous week, Hasina's lawyers said they had filed an urgent appeal to the UN pointing out major judicial fairness and due process issues at the ICT.

The former leader faced trial together with her former home minister and top law enforcement officer.

Although the punishment grants partial finality to relatives of the deceased in the protests, it may do little to soothe the state's ideological splits.

"The anger against the former leader and the her political party has not diminished," a civil liberties campaigner in Dhaka informed news organizations. "Neither she nor the party has expressed regret or demonstrated contrition for the deaths of numerous individuals."

The activist stated "This creates challenges for the faction to gain approval by a majority of people in this country."

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

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

A journalist, an observer of Bangladeshi affairs, said the "fundamental aspect of the condemnation could make it even more difficult" for the political faction to become a standard element of Bangladeshi politics again.

This could alter if "a form of contrition emerges and a disassociation with Sheikh Hasina and the previous administration," he said.