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The ex-prime minister of Bangladesh has been given a death sentence for human rights violations over her harsh response on protests led by students which caused her ousting.

Hasina was declared culpable of permitting fatal actions to be used against demonstrators, 1,400 of whom lost their lives during the turmoil last year.

The trial proceeded without her presence by the International Crimes Court in Bangladesh, as she resides in exile in India after being removed from office in July 2024.

Legal authorities charged her of being behind multiple fatalities during the protests. The former leader rejected the entire case, calling the trial as "unfair and agenda-driven".

The verdict marks a decisive point for Bangladesh, as the protests revealed fury over years of repression. Families of those killed and harmed had called for tough penalties.

Responding to the decision in a five-page statement, Hasina said the capital punishment was the interim government's way of "eradicating the Awami League" as a governing body and that she was content of her leadership's history on individual freedoms.

"I am not afraid to face my accusers in a fair court where the evidence can be weighed and examined justly."

The nation's capital, Dhaka, where the legal proceedings occurred, was under increased safeguards prior to the decision on Monday, with several of her detractors organizing a demonstration and cheering as the judgment was announced.

The capital witnessed a notable rise in unrest, with numerous incendiary devices set off and public transport vehicles burned in the days leading up to the verdict.

One explosive incident was reported in Dhaka on Monday morning, with no victims identified, area law enforcement officer the authorities' representative stated to media outlets.

The youth-driven revolt last year commenced through demands to abolish public sector reservation policies but transformed into a broader opposition campaign.

International human rights monitors said in a report in February that the approximately 1,400 deaths could constitute "human rights atrocities".

The paper detailed the gunfire from minimal distance of certain demonstrators, the deliberate maiming of others, unjustified apprehensions and mistreatment.

Leaked audio of a telephone conversation involving Hasina confirmed by media examinations earlier this year suggested she had approved the use of "lethal weapons" in July 2024. The recording was presented in court during the legal process.

Before the decision, family members of those who died in the demonstrations stated to news agencies they wanted strict consequences for Hasina.

Ramjan Ali, 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 abused their power".

Lucky Akther, whose partner was fatally injured near Dhaka in August 2024, said she wanted her penalty 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 caretaker administration under the guidance of Nobel laureate Muhammad Yunus has taken charge. A general election is scheduled for February 2026.

Nevertheless, the her former political organization, the former ruling party, was outlawed by Bangladesh's interim government in May.

She alerted during the past month that if the the League's representatives were prohibited from running in the upcoming election, numerous would avoid the election.

This decision presents a international dilemma for both nations. Dhaka has formally requested her repatriation but until now India has shown no willingness to acquiesce.

Her officially designated attorney Mohammad Amir Hossain said he was "unhappy and desiring the verdict had been different".

"I cannot even contest because my represented individuals are away; that's why I am sad," he added.

The previous week, her legal team said they had submitted an immediate petition to the UN raising major judicial fairness and judicial process problems at the ICT.

The former leader faced trial together with her former home minister and security forces head.

Although the punishment provides certain resolution to families of killed in the protests, it may do little to soothe the country's political divisions.

"The fury directed at Sheikh Hasina and the the former ruling faction has not decreased," a human rights advocate from the capital informed news organizations. "The leader and her faction has apologised or demonstrated contrition for the killings of hundreds of people."

The advocate declared "This complicates matters for the faction to gain approval by a majority of people in this nation."

The campaigner further stated that the penalty was not finality for the kin of those who died and were wounded.

"We work with multiple individuals who underwent irreversible limb loss, they are now disabled, as a result of the harsh measures. They cannot pardon her."

An analyst, a journalist and a long-time Bangladesh watcher, said the "very nature of the conviction could make it particularly hard" for her party to become a regular participant of Bangladeshi politics again.

This could alter if "a form of contrition emerges and a distancing from Hasina and the old leadership," he stated.