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Bangladesh's former prime minister has been handed capital punishment for human rights violations over her severe measures on protests led by students which caused her ousting.

Hasina was declared culpable of permitting fatal actions to be used against demonstrators, among whom around 1,400 people lost their lives during the unrest last year.

Hasina was tried without her presence by the special international tribunal in Bangladesh, having been exiled in India since she was forced from power in July 2024.

Legal authorities charged her of being responsible for hundreds of killings during the protests. Hasina has denied all charges, calling the trial as "biased and politically motivated".

This judgment represents a critical juncture for Bangladesh, as the protests revealed fury over years of repression. Families of those killed and injured had requested strict sentences.

Reacting to the verdict in a detailed document, the former leader stated the execution sentence was the caretaker administration's way of "eradicating the Awami League" as a governing body and that she was satisfied of her administration's performance on civil liberties.

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

Bangladesh's main city, Dhaka, where the court convened, was under tightened security ahead of the decision on Monday, with several of her detractors organizing a demonstration and applauding as the judgment was announced.

The capital witnessed a sudden increase in unrest, with multiple explosives detonated and buses set on fire in the days leading up to the verdict.

One explosive incident was reported in Dhaka on Monday morning, with no victims identified, local police official Jisanul Haque told media outlets.

The protest movement led by students last year started with demands to abolish government job quotas but evolved into a broader opposition campaign.

International human rights monitors said in a report in February that the around 1,400 fatalities could amount to "human rights atrocities".

The report documented the gunfire from minimal distance of certain demonstrators, the purposeful disabling of additional individuals, arbitrary arrests and abuse.

Unauthorized recordings of a telephone conversation involving Hasina confirmed by investigative sources earlier this year suggested she had sanctioned the use of "fatal instruments" in July 2024. The sound file was broadcast in court during the legal process.

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

One relative, whose brother was shot dead in July 2024, said he wanted "exemplary punishment" for her and co-accused who have "performed revengeful deeds and misused their authority".

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

"Exclusively thereafter the kin of victims [in the protests] will obtain solace in their hearts."

Since Hasina's ousting, an caretaker administration headed by Nobel laureate Muhammad Yunus has assumed control. A parliamentary election is set for February 2026.

Nevertheless, the Hasina's political party, Hasina's political party, was prohibited by Bangladesh's temporary leadership in May.

The former leader cautioned last month that if the her faction's nominees were barred from participating in the upcoming election, millions would boycott the ballot.

The verdict now poses a international dilemma for the neighboring countries. Dhaka has formally requested her repatriation but so far India has shown no willingness to comply.

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

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

Last week, Hasina's lawyers said they had filed an urgent appeal to the UN highlighting serious fair trial and judicial process problems at the ICT.

The former leader faced trial in conjunction with her ex-interior minister and police chief.

While the sentence offers some closure to relatives of the deceased in the protests, it may have minimal effect on calming the state's ideological splits.

"The fury directed at the former leader and the her political party has not decreased," a Dhaka-based rights activist stated to media outlets. "Both she and the organization has said sorry or displayed repentance for the fatalities of countless citizens."

The advocate declared "It makes it difficult for the organization to receive endorsement by a most citizens in this nation."

The advocate continued that the sentence was not closure for the relatives of those killed and injured.

"We assist multiple individuals who underwent irreversible limb loss, they are now disabled, because of the suppression. They will never be able to forgive 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 Bangladeshi politics again.

This might transform if "there is some kind of apology and a separation from Sheikh Hasina and the old leadership," he stated.