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The country's previous leader has been handed capital punishment for atrocities over her crackdown on protests led by students which caused her forced departure.

Sheikh Hasina was found guilty of allowing lethal force to be used against protesters, 1,400 of whom lost their lives during the disturbances in the previous year.

The trial proceeded while she was absent by the International Crimes Tribunal (ICT) in Bangladesh, as she resides in exile in India after being removed from office in July 2024.

The prosecution alleged 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 pivotal moment for Bangladesh, as the protests brought forth resentment over extended periods of oppression. Families of those killed and wounded had demanded tough penalties.

Answering the judgment in a detailed document, she expressed the execution sentence was the caretaker administration's way of "eradicating the Awami League" as a electoral entity and that she was content of her leadership's history on individual freedoms.

"I do not fear to face my accusers in a proper tribunal where the evidence can be weighed and reviewed impartially."

The capital, Dhaka, where the legal proceedings occurred, was under enhanced protection ahead of the ruling on Monday, with numerous opponents of Hasina organizing a demonstration and celebrating as the sentence was declared.

The city has seen a recent spike in disturbances, with multiple explosives detonated and public transport vehicles burned in the time before the verdict.

A minimum of one detonation was noted in Dhaka on Monday morning, with no casualties reported, local police official the authorities' representative informed media outlets.

The student-led uprising during 2024 started with demands to abolish government job quotas but morphed into a wider anti-government movement.

UN human rights investigators declared in an analysis in February that the around 1,400 fatalities could constitute "crimes against humanity".

The report documented the gunfire from minimal distance of certain demonstrators, the intentional injuring of others, unjustified apprehensions and torture.

Disclosed sound files of a telephone conversation involving Hasina verified by external reviews in previous months implied she had authorized the use of "lethal weapons" in July 2024. The audio was played in court during the proceedings.

Ahead of the verdict, family members of those killed during the protests stated to media representatives they wanted the former leader to face strict penalties.

One relative, whose family member was fatally wounded in July 2024, said he wanted "strict sentence" for Hasina and others who have "performed revengeful deeds and abused their power".

Lucky Akther, whose spouse died near Dhaka in August 2024, said she wanted the former leader's punishment to be "implemented before the election".

"Only then the families of those killed [in the protests] will find peace in their hearts."

Since Hasina's ousting, an temporary leadership under the guidance of economic expert Muhammad Yunus has taken charge. A parliamentary election is planned for February 2026.

However, the her former political organization, Hasina's political party, was banned by Bangladesh's interim government in May.

She alerted in the previous month that if the her faction's nominees were barred from participating in the forthcoming vote, countless would abstain the ballot.

This decision presents a foreign relations issue for the neighboring countries. Authorities have sought her return but to date India has demonstrated no inclination to agree.

Her officially designated attorney her legal counsel said he was "disappointed and hoping the decision had been otherwise".

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

Recently, Hasina's lawyers said they had lodged a prompt application to the UN highlighting serious fair trial and judicial process problems at the ICT.

Legal proceedings involved Hasina in conjunction with her ex-interior minister and police chief.

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

"The resentment towards the former leader and the her political party has not diminished," a Dhaka-based rights activist stated to news organizations. "The leader and her faction has apologised or shown any remorse for the deaths of numerous individuals."

The advocate declared "This complicates matters for the party to be accepted by a majority of people in this country."

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

"We work with multiple individuals who suffered permanent amputations, they are amputees now, due to the crackdown. They are incapable of excusing her."

A journalist, 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 regular participant of the nation's political landscape again.

This could alter if "a form of contrition emerges and a distancing from Sheikh Hasina and the former hierarchy," he stated.