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The ex-prime minister of Bangladesh has been handed capital punishment for human rights violations stemming from her harsh response on youth demonstrations which led to her forced departure.

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

Hasina was tried in absentia by the International Crimes Court in Bangladesh, having been exiled in India since she was forced from power in July 2024.

Legal authorities charged her of being responsible for numerous deaths during the protests. The former leader rejected every accusation, calling the trial as "biased and politically motivated".

The verdict marks a pivotal moment for Bangladesh, as the protests revealed fury over extended periods of oppression. Families of those killed and harmed had demanded severe punishments.

Answering the judgment in a comprehensive declaration, Hasina said the death penalty was the temporary leadership's way of "eradicating the Awami League" as a political force and that she was content of her government's record on human rights.

"I do not fear to confront those accusing me in a just legal forum where the facts can be assessed and tested fairly."

The capital, Dhaka, where the tribunal took place, was under tightened security prior to the decision on Monday, with many of Hasina's critics holding a protest and applauding as the judgment was announced.

Dhaka experienced a recent spike in turmoil, with multiple explosives detonated and coaches ignited 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 told press agencies.

The student-led uprising last year began with requests to remove state employment quotas but transformed into a more extensive dissent initiative.

United Nations rights examiners said in a report in February that the nearly 1,400 casualties could amount to "crimes against humanity".

The study recorded the firing at close quarters of a number of activists, the intentional injuring of additional individuals, arbitrary arrests and abuse.

Disclosed sound files of a telephone conversation involving Hasina authenticated by external reviews earlier this year implied she had authorized the use of "lethal weapons" in July 2024. The audio was played in court during the trial.

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

A family representative, whose family member was fatally wounded in July 2024, said he wanted "exemplary punishment" for her and co-accused who have "engaged in retaliatory actions and abused their power".

Another relative, whose partner was fatally injured near Dhaka in August 2024, said she wanted Hasina's sentence to be "executed before the election".

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

Since Hasina's ousting, an caretaker administration led by Nobel laureate Muhammad Yunus has taken charge. A parliamentary election is scheduled for February 2026.

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

Hasina warned during the past month that if the her faction's nominees were prohibited from running in the forthcoming vote, millions would boycott the election.

This decision presents a diplomatic challenge for the neighboring countries. The Bangladesh government has asked her return but until now India has expressed no readiness to comply.

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

"I am unable to challenge because my defendants are not present; which is why I am sad," he added.

Recently, the defense attorneys said they had filed an urgent appeal to the UN raising serious fair trial and legal procedure concerns at the ICT.

The former leader faced trial together with her former home minister and police chief.

Even though the verdict provides certain resolution to relatives of the deceased in the protests, it may have minimal effect on calming the state's ideological splits.

"The resentment towards Sheikh Hasina and the the former ruling faction has not decreased," a Dhaka-based rights activist informed media outlets. "Neither she nor the party has expressed regret or displayed repentance for the deaths of numerous individuals."

The activist stated "It makes it difficult for the organization to receive endorsement by a bulk of the population in this country."

The campaigner further stated that the punishment was not resolution for the kin of those fatally and non-fatally harmed.

"We assist numerous persons who underwent irreversible limb loss, they are currently without limbs, because of the suppression. They are incapable of excusing her."

David Bergman, a journalist and a long-time Bangladesh watcher, said the "very nature of the conviction could make it particularly hard" for the political faction to become a normal feature of the nation's political landscape again.

This could alter if "an expression of regret occurs and a disassociation with Sheikh Hasina and the old leadership," he expressed.