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The country's previous leader has been sentenced to death for crimes against humanity due to her crackdown on student-led protests which resulted in her ousting.

The court convicted Sheikh Hasina of allowing lethal force to be used against demonstrators, among whom around 1,400 people were killed during the turmoil in the previous year.

Hasina was tried while she was absent by the special international tribunal in Bangladesh, as she resides in exile in India after being removed from office in July 2024.

Legal authorities charged her of being behind numerous deaths during the protests. She has refuted all charges, describing the process as "unfair and agenda-driven".

The decision signifies a critical juncture for Bangladesh, as the protests revealed fury over years of repression. Next of kin of victims and injured had requested tough penalties.

Responding to the decision in a five-page statement, the former leader stated the capital punishment was the temporary leadership's way of "nullifying [her party] the Awami League" as a political force and that she was content of her leadership's history on individual freedoms.

"I am not afraid to confront those accusing me in a fair court where the proof can be evaluated and tested fairly."

The capital, Dhaka, where the court convened, was under tightened security ahead of the ruling on Monday, with many of Hasina's critics organizing a demonstration and applauding as the verdict was read.

Dhaka experienced a notable rise in unrest, with dozens of bombs exploded and public transport vehicles burned in the time before the verdict.

A minimum of one detonation was noted in Dhaka on Monday morning, with zero injuries documented, local police official the authorities' representative stated to press agencies.

The protest movement led by students last year started with calls to eliminate government job quotas but transformed into a more extensive dissent initiative.

United Nations rights examiners stated in a document in February that the nearly 1,400 casualties could represent "human rights atrocities".

The report documented the shooting at point-blank range of some protesters, the purposeful disabling of further participants, unwarranted detentions and torture.

Unauthorized recordings of one of Hasina's phone calls authenticated by external reviews earlier this year suggested she had approved the use of "lethal weapons" in July 2024. The sound file was broadcast in court during the proceedings.

Before the decision, kin of those fatally injured in the unrest told press outlets they wanted the former leader to face strict penalties.

Ramjan Ali, whose sibling was killed in July 2024, said he wanted "severe penalty" for Hasina and others who have "committed acts of vengeance and exploited their positions".

A different family member, whose partner was fatally injured near Dhaka in August 2024, said she wanted Hasina's sentence to be "carried out before the election".

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

Following her removal, an caretaker administration led by economic expert Muhammad Yunus has assumed power. A parliamentary election is set for February 2026.

Nevertheless, the her former political organization, the former ruling party, was prohibited by Bangladesh's caretaker administration in May.

She alerted last month that if the the League's representatives were barred from participating in the imminent electoral process, countless would abstain the election.

The judgment creates a international dilemma for both nations. Dhaka has formally requested her extradition but until now India has demonstrated no inclination to agree.

Her officially designated attorney her legal counsel said he was "unhappy and desiring the verdict had been different".

"I even cannot appeal because my defendants are not present; for that reason I am disheartened," he added.

Last week, the defense attorneys said they had lodged a prompt application to the UN raising serious fair trial and legal procedure concerns at the ICT.

Legal proceedings involved Hasina in conjunction with her former home minister and security forces head.

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

"The anger against Sheikh Hasina and the the former ruling faction has not subsided," a human rights advocate from the capital told news organizations. "The leader and her faction has apologised or displayed repentance for the deaths of numerous individuals."

The activist stated "This creates challenges for the party to be accepted by a majority of people in this state."

The advocate continued that the sentence was not resolution for the relatives of those fatally and non-fatally harmed.

"We assist numerous persons who lost their limbs forever, they are currently without limbs, due to the crackdown. They cannot pardon her."

David Bergman, a commentator on the nation's politics, said the "very nature of the conviction could make it increasingly challenging" for her party to become a standard element of the nation's political landscape again.

This could alter if "a form of contrition emerges and a distancing from Sheikh Hasina and the previous administration," he expressed.