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The country's previous leader has been handed capital punishment for human rights violations due to her crackdown on youth demonstrations which led to her forced departure.

Sheikh Hasina was found guilty of allowing lethal force to be used against protesters, among whom around 1,400 people were killed during the turmoil last year.

The trial proceeded in absentia by the special international tribunal in Bangladesh, having been exiled in India following her ouster in July 2024.

Prosecutors accused her of being behind hundreds of killings during the protests. She has refuted every accusation, labeling the proceedings as "unfair and agenda-driven".

This judgment represents a decisive point for Bangladesh, as the protests revealed fury over long-standing suppression. Relatives of the deceased and harmed had requested tough penalties.

Reacting to the verdict in a detailed document, she expressed the execution sentence was the interim government's way of "nullifying [her party] the Awami League" as a electoral entity and that she was proud of her administration's performance on civil liberties.

"I have no trepidation to confront those accusing me in a fair court where the evidence can be weighed and reviewed impartially."

The capital, Dhaka, where the tribunal took place, was under enhanced protection ahead of the verdict on Monday, with several of her detractors holding a protest and celebrating as the sentence was declared.

Dhaka experienced a notable rise in turmoil, with dozens of bombs exploded and buses set on fire in the days leading up to the verdict.

A minimum of one detonation was noted in Dhaka on Monday morning, with zero injuries documented, local police official Jisanul Haque told news organizations.

The protest movement led by students in the previous year commenced through requests to remove government job quotas but morphed into a wider anti-government movement.

International human rights monitors declared in an analysis in February that the around 1,400 fatalities could represent "crimes against humanity".

The paper detailed the firing at close quarters of a number of activists, the deliberate maiming of additional individuals, unwarranted detentions and abuse.

Disclosed sound files of a telephone conversation involving Hasina authenticated by external reviews in previous months indicated she had authorized the use of "deadly arms" in July 2024. The audio was played in court during the trial.

Prior to the ruling, relatives of those who died in the demonstrations told press outlets they wanted the former leader to face strict penalties.

One relative, whose sibling was killed in July 2024, said he wanted "strict sentence" for her and co-accused who have "performed revengeful deeds and exploited their positions".

Another relative, whose partner was fatally injured near Dhaka in August 2024, said she wanted her penalty to be "carried out before the election".

"Only then the families of those killed [in the protests] will achieve closure in their souls."

Following her removal, an caretaker administration led by economic expert Muhammad Yunus has assumed control. A general election is planned for February 2026.

However, the Awami League, Hasina's political party, was outlawed by Bangladesh's temporary leadership in May.

Hasina warned during the past month that if the the League's representatives were banned from standing in the upcoming election, millions would boycott the ballot.

The verdict now poses a international dilemma for both nations. Authorities have sought her extradition but to date India has expressed no readiness to acquiesce.

The legal representative assigned to her her legal counsel said he was "unhappy and desiring the outcome had varied".

"I cannot even contest because my defendants are not present; for that reason I am disheartened," he stated further.

Last week, the defense attorneys said they had lodged a prompt application to the UN raising major judicial fairness and legal procedure concerns at the ICT.

Legal proceedings involved Hasina in conjunction with her previous domestic affairs official and security forces head.

Even though the verdict offers some closure to kin of victims in the protests, it may do little to soothe the country's political divisions.

"The resentment towards Hasina and the her political party has not decreased," a Dhaka-based rights activist informed press agencies. "The leader and her faction has apologised or displayed repentance for the deaths of numerous individuals."

The activist stated "This complicates matters for the party to be accepted by a majority of people in this nation."

The campaigner further stated that the punishment was not closure for the families of those who died and were wounded.

"We support numerous persons who underwent irreversible limb loss, they are now disabled, due to the crackdown. They will never be able to forgive her."

An analyst, a commentator on the nation's politics, said the "very nature of the conviction could make it increasingly challenging" for Awami League to become a normal feature of the nation's political landscape again.

This might transform if "an expression of regret occurs and a disassociation with the former leader and the previous administration," he stated.