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The ex-prime minister of Bangladesh has been given a death sentence for crimes against humanity stemming from her crackdown on protests led by students which resulted in her removal from power.

Sheikh Hasina was found guilty of permitting fatal actions to be used against protesters, among whom around 1,400 people lost their lives during the disturbances in the previous year.

Legal proceedings were conducted in absentia by the International Crimes Tribunal (ICT) in Bangladesh, since she went into exile in India after being removed from office in July 2024.

The prosecution alleged of being the mastermind of multiple fatalities during the protests. The former leader rejected the entire case, calling the trial as "prejudiced and driven by politics".

This judgment represents a pivotal moment for Bangladesh, as the protests unleashed anger over years of repression. Next of kin of victims and harmed had called for tough penalties.

Answering the judgment in a detailed document, the former leader stated the death penalty was the temporary leadership's way of "eliminating her political faction" as a governing body and that she was satisfied of her administration's performance on human rights.

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

The capital, Dhaka, where the legal proceedings occurred, was under increased safeguards ahead of the verdict on Monday, with numerous opponents of Hasina organizing a demonstration and applauding as the verdict was read.

The city has seen a recent spike in turmoil, with multiple explosives detonated and buses set on fire in the time before the verdict.

At least one bomb explosion was recorded in Dhaka on Monday morning, with no victims identified, local police official the authorities' representative stated to media outlets.

The protest movement led by students in the previous year started with requests to remove public sector reservation policies but morphed into a broader opposition campaign.

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

The paper detailed the shooting at point-blank range of a number of activists, the intentional injuring of others, unwarranted detentions and abuse.

Disclosed sound files of a call made by the former leader verified by external reviews in previous months suggested she had authorized the use of "deadly arms" in July 2024. The sound file was broadcast in court during the legal process.

Prior to the ruling, family members of those who died in the demonstrations informed press outlets they wanted strict consequences for Hasina.

One relative, whose brother was shot dead in July 2024, said he wanted "strict sentence" for Hasina and others who have "engaged in retaliatory actions and misused their authority".

A different family member, whose spouse died near Dhaka in August 2024, said she wanted Hasina's sentence to be "executed before the election".

"Only then the kin of victims [in the protests] will obtain solace in their hearts."

Following her removal, an caretaker administration under the guidance of economist Muhammad Yunus has assumed power. A general election is planned for February 2026.

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

Hasina warned in the previous month that if the party's candidates were barred from participating in the imminent electoral process, millions would boycott the election.

This decision presents a international dilemma for India and Bangladesh. The Bangladesh government has asked her repatriation but to date India has demonstrated no inclination to acquiesce.

Her officially designated attorney Mohammad Amir Hossain said he was "unhappy and desiring the decision had been otherwise".

"I even cannot appeal because my clients are absent; that's why I am disappointed," he added.

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

The former leader faced trial together with her former home minister and security forces head.

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

"The anger against the former leader and the the former ruling faction has not diminished," a civil liberties campaigner in Dhaka informed news organizations. "Neither she nor the party has apologised or shown any remorse for the fatalities of countless citizens."

She said "This creates challenges for the party to be accepted by a bulk of the population in this nation."

The advocate continued that the sentence was not resolution for the kin of those who died and were wounded.

"We support several people who suffered permanent amputations, they are currently without limbs, because of the suppression. They cannot pardon her."

A journalist, an observer of Bangladeshi affairs, said the "inherent character of the guilty verdict could make it increasingly challenging" for her party to become a regular participant of the country's governance system again.

This could alter if "a form of contrition emerges and a distancing from the former leader and the old leadership," he said.