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Bangladesh's former prime minister has been sentenced to death for crimes against humanity over her harsh response on protests led by students which caused her ousting.

The court convicted Sheikh Hasina of permitting fatal actions to be used against demonstrators, 1,400 of whom died during the disturbances in the previous year.

Legal proceedings were conducted while she was absent by the International Crimes Court in Bangladesh, since she went into exile 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, describing the process as "biased and politically motivated".

This judgment represents a pivotal moment for Bangladesh, as the protests unleashed anger over extended periods of oppression. Relatives of the deceased and wounded had demanded tough penalties.

Reacting to the verdict in a five-page statement, the former leader stated the execution sentence was the caretaker administration's way of "nullifying [her party] 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 meet my challengers in a just legal forum where the facts can be assessed and examined justly."

Bangladesh's main city, Dhaka, where the court convened, was under increased safeguards before the decision on Monday, with numerous opponents of Hasina staging a rally and applauding as the sentence was declared.

Dhaka experienced a recent spike in disturbances, with dozens of bombs exploded and buses set on fire in the time before the verdict.

At least one bomb explosion was noted in Dhaka on Monday morning, with no casualties reported, local police official Jisanul Haque informed news organizations.

The youth-driven revolt in the previous year commenced through calls to eliminate government job quotas but morphed into a wider anti-government movement.

International human rights monitors stated in a document in February that the around 1,400 fatalities could amount to "crimes against humanity".

The paper detailed the gunfire from minimal distance of certain demonstrators, the purposeful disabling of further participants, unwarranted detentions and abuse.

Leaked audio of one of Hasina's phone calls verified by investigative sources during the current year implied she had sanctioned the use of "fatal instruments" in July 2024. The sound file was broadcast in court during the proceedings.

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

Ramjan Ali, whose family member was fatally wounded in July 2024, said he wanted "severe penalty" for the former leader and associates who have "engaged in retaliatory actions and misused their authority".

Another relative, whose spouse died near Dhaka in August 2024, said she wanted her penalty to be "carried out before the election".

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

After her departure, an temporary leadership headed by Nobel laureate Muhammad Yunus has taken charge. A national vote is planned for February 2026.

Nevertheless, the Awami League, Hasina's political party, was outlawed by Bangladesh's interim government in May.

Hasina warned last month that if the her faction's nominees were banned from standing in the forthcoming vote, numerous would avoid the election.

This decision presents a international dilemma for the neighboring countries. The Bangladesh government has asked her extradition but to date India has shown no willingness to acquiesce.

The legal representative assigned to her her legal counsel said he was "unhappy and desiring the verdict had been different".

"I am unable to challenge because my clients are absent; for that reason I am disheartened," he added.

The previous week, the defense attorneys said they had lodged a prompt application to the UN pointing out significant due process and due process issues at the ICT.

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

Although the punishment grants partial finality to families of killed in the protests, it may do little to soothe the country's political divisions.

"The anger against Sheikh Hasina and the the former ruling faction has not diminished," a human rights advocate from the capital stated to press agencies. "The leader and her faction has expressed regret or displayed repentance for the killings of hundreds of people."

The advocate declared "This complicates matters for the party to be accepted by a bulk of the population in this state."

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

"We assist several people who lost their limbs forever, they are amputees now, as a result of the harsh measures. They will never be able to forgive her."

An analyst, a commentator on the nation's politics, said the "fundamental aspect of the condemnation could make it even more difficult" for her party to become a regular participant of Bangladeshi politics again.

This could alter if "there is some kind of apology and a separation from Hasina and the previous administration," he said.