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The country's previous leader has been given a death sentence for human rights violations due to her severe measures on youth demonstrations which led to her removal from power.

The court convicted Sheikh Hasina of authorizing deadly measures to be used against demonstrators, 1,400 of whom were killed during the disturbances last year.

The trial proceeded in absentia by the special international tribunal in Bangladesh, having been exiled in India after being removed from office in July 2024.

Prosecutors accused her of being responsible for multiple fatalities during the protests. She has refuted the entire case, labeling the proceedings as "biased and politically motivated".

This judgment represents a pivotal moment for Bangladesh, as the protests revealed fury over long-standing suppression. Next of kin of victims and harmed had called for strict sentences.

Answering the judgment in a detailed document, Hasina said the execution sentence was the interim government's way of "eradicating the Awami League" as a political force and that she was content of her leadership's history on human rights.

"I do not fear to meet my challengers in a proper tribunal where the facts can be assessed and reviewed impartially."

The nation's capital, Dhaka, where the legal proceedings occurred, was under tightened security ahead of the decision on Monday, with many of Hasina's critics organizing a demonstration and applauding as the verdict was read.

The capital witnessed a notable rise in turmoil, with multiple explosives detonated and coaches ignited in the time before the verdict.

At least one bomb explosion was reported in Dhaka on Monday morning, with no victims identified, area law enforcement officer Jisanul Haque told press agencies.

The protest movement led by students last year commenced through calls to eliminate government job quotas but morphed into a more extensive dissent initiative.

UN human rights investigators declared in an analysis in February that the nearly 1,400 casualties could amount to "human rights atrocities".

The paper detailed the shooting at point-blank range of some protesters, the purposeful disabling of additional individuals, arbitrary arrests and abuse.

Disclosed sound files of one of Hasina's phone calls authenticated by investigative sources earlier this year indicated she had sanctioned the use of "deadly arms" in July 2024. The audio was played in court during the trial.

Prior to the ruling, family members of those fatally injured in the unrest stated to media representatives they wanted Hasina to be punished severely.

Ramjan Ali, 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 partner was fatally injured near Dhaka in August 2024, said she wanted the former leader's punishment to be "implemented before the election".

"Exclusively thereafter the families of those killed [in the protests] will achieve closure in their minds."

Following her removal, an interim government led by economic expert Muhammad Yunus has assumed control. A national vote is planned for February 2026.

Nevertheless, the her former political organization, her political faction, was banned by Bangladesh's interim government in May.

She alerted during the past month that if the the League's representatives were banned from standing in the imminent electoral process, numerous would avoid the election.

The verdict now poses a foreign relations issue for India and Bangladesh. Dhaka has formally requested her repatriation but to date India has demonstrated no inclination to agree.

Her officially designated attorney Mohammad Amir Hossain said he was "unhappy and desiring the outcome had varied".

"I am unable to challenge because my clients are absent; which is why I am disheartened," he stated further.

Last 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 alongside her ex-interior minister and police chief.

Even though the verdict grants partial finality to families of killed in the protests, it may have minimal effect on calming the country's political divisions.

"The anger against Sheikh Hasina and the the former ruling faction has not decreased," a Dhaka-based rights activist told media outlets. "The leader and her faction has expressed regret or shown any remorse for the killings of hundreds of people."

The advocate declared "This complicates matters for the organization to receive endorsement by a majority of people in this state."

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

"We support several people who lost their limbs forever, they are currently without limbs, due to the crackdown. They will never be able to forgive her."

An analyst, an observer of Bangladeshi affairs, said the "inherent character of the guilty verdict could make it particularly hard" for the political faction to become a normal feature of Bangladeshi politics again.

This may change if "an expression of regret occurs and a distancing from Sheikh Hasina and the old leadership," he said.