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The ex-prime minister of Bangladesh has been given a death sentence for crimes against humanity over her severe measures on student-led protests which caused her removal from power.

Sheikh Hasina was found guilty of allowing lethal force to be used against demonstrators, among whom around 1,400 people were killed during the disturbances in the previous year.

Legal proceedings were conducted without her presence by the special international tribunal in Bangladesh, as she resides in exile in India since she was forced from power in July 2024.

The prosecution alleged of being the mastermind of numerous deaths during the protests. She has refuted all charges, describing the process as "prejudiced and driven by politics".

This judgment represents a decisive point for Bangladesh, as the protests unleashed anger over extended periods of oppression. Relatives of the deceased and harmed had requested severe punishments.

Answering the judgment in a detailed document, she expressed the death penalty was the caretaker administration's way of "eradicating the Awami League" as a electoral entity and that she was proud of her government's record on civil liberties.

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

The nation's capital, Dhaka, where the legal proceedings occurred, was under increased safeguards before the decision on Monday, with numerous opponents of Hasina staging a rally and celebrating as the sentence was declared.

The capital witnessed a notable rise in unrest, with dozens of bombs exploded and coaches ignited in the period preceding the verdict.

A minimum of one detonation was recorded in Dhaka on Monday morning, with no casualties reported, regional security representative the authorities' representative stated to press agencies.

The youth-driven revolt during 2024 commenced through calls to eliminate state employment quotas but transformed into a more extensive dissent initiative.

International human rights monitors stated in a document in February that the nearly 1,400 casualties could amount to "violations of human dignity".

The paper detailed the shooting at point-blank range of some protesters, the deliberate maiming of further participants, arbitrary arrests and abuse.

Unauthorized recordings of a telephone conversation involving Hasina confirmed by media examinations earlier this year implied she had approved the use of "deadly arms" in July 2024. The sound file was broadcast in court during the legal process.

Ahead of the verdict, family members of those killed during the protests told media representatives they wanted Hasina to be punished severely.

One relative, whose sibling was killed in July 2024, said he wanted "exemplary punishment" for Hasina and others who have "engaged in retaliatory actions and abused their power".

Lucky Akther, whose partner was fatally injured near Dhaka in August 2024, said she wanted her penalty to be "implemented before the election".

"Exclusively thereafter the kin of victims [in the protests] will obtain solace in their souls."

After her departure, an temporary leadership led by economist Muhammad Yunus has assumed power. A national vote is set for February 2026.

Nevertheless, the Hasina's political party, the former ruling party, was banned by Bangladesh's temporary leadership in May.

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

The judgment creates a international dilemma for both nations. The Bangladesh government has asked her extradition but until now India has demonstrated no inclination to acquiesce.

The legal representative assigned to her Mohammad Amir Hossain said he was "sad [and wishes] the verdict had been different".

"I even cannot appeal because my clients are absent; that's why I am disheartened," he stated further.

The previous week, the defense attorneys said they had filed an urgent appeal to the UN raising serious fair trial and judicial process problems at the ICT.

Legal proceedings involved Hasina in conjunction with her ex-interior minister and security forces head.

Although the punishment offers some closure to families of killed in the protests, it may not significantly ease the country's political divisions.

"The anger against Sheikh Hasina and the Awami League has not subsided," a civil liberties campaigner in Dhaka informed news organizations. "Both she and the organization has apologised or displayed repentance for the killings of hundreds of people."

The advocate declared "It makes it difficult for the faction to gain approval by a bulk of the population in this state."

The advocate continued that the sentence was not closure for the relatives of those killed and injured.

"We work with several people who underwent irreversible limb loss, they are currently without limbs, due to the crackdown. They are incapable of excusing her."

An analyst, 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 standard element of the country's governance system again.

This may change if "an expression of regret occurs and a separation from the former leader and the former hierarchy," he stated.