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Bangladesh's former prime minister has been handed capital punishment for human rights violations due to her crackdown on protests led by students which led to her forced departure.

Hasina was declared culpable of permitting fatal actions to be used against demonstrators, among whom around 1,400 people were killed during the disturbances last year.

Legal proceedings were conducted without her presence by the International Crimes Tribunal (ICT) in Bangladesh, having been exiled in India following her ouster in July 2024.

Legal authorities charged her of being behind hundreds of killings during the protests. She has refuted the entire case, describing the process as "prejudiced and driven by politics".

The verdict marks a pivotal moment for Bangladesh, as the protests unleashed anger over years of repression. Families of those killed and harmed had called for tough penalties.

Answering the judgment in a detailed document, Hasina said the capital punishment was the temporary leadership's way of "nullifying [her party] the Awami League" as a political force and that she was proud of her government's record on human rights.

"I do not fear to meet my challengers in a just legal forum where the evidence can be weighed and tested fairly."

The nation's capital, Dhaka, where the legal proceedings occurred, was under tightened security prior to the verdict on Monday, with numerous opponents of Hasina organizing a demonstration and cheering as the verdict was read.

The capital witnessed a recent spike in disturbances, with dozens of bombs exploded and public transport vehicles burned in the days leading up to the verdict.

A minimum of one detonation was noted in Dhaka on Monday morning, with no casualties reported, local police official the police spokesperson informed news organizations.

The protest movement led by students in the previous year started with calls to eliminate government job quotas but transformed into a wider anti-government movement.

International human rights monitors said in a report in February that the nearly 1,400 casualties could represent "crimes against humanity".

The report documented the shooting at point-blank range of some protesters, the purposeful disabling of others, arbitrary arrests and abuse.

Leaked audio of a call made by the former leader verified by external reviews earlier this year indicated she had approved the use of "lethal weapons" in July 2024. The audio was played in court during the legal process.

Before the decision, kin of those fatally injured in the unrest told news agencies they wanted the former leader to face strict penalties.

Ramjan Ali, whose sibling was killed in July 2024, said he wanted "strict sentence" for the former leader and associates who have "engaged in retaliatory actions and exploited their positions".

A different family member, whose husband was killed near Dhaka in August 2024, said she wanted the former leader's punishment to be "carried out before the election".

"Exclusively thereafter the relatives of the deceased [in the protests] will find peace in their minds."

Since Hasina's ousting, an caretaker administration under the guidance of economic expert Muhammad Yunus has taken charge. A national vote is planned for February 2026.

Nevertheless, the her former political organization, the former ruling party, was banned by Bangladesh's caretaker administration in May.

Hasina warned last month that if the her faction's nominees were banned from standing in the forthcoming vote, millions would boycott the election.

The verdict now poses a international dilemma for India and Bangladesh. Dhaka has formally requested her repatriation but to date India has demonstrated no inclination to comply.

Hasina's state-appointed lawyer her legal counsel said he was "disappointed and hoping the outcome had varied".

"I am unable to challenge because my clients are absent; that's why I am sad," he stated further.

Last week, the defense attorneys said they had submitted an immediate petition to the UN raising major judicial fairness and legal procedure concerns at the ICT.

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

Although the punishment provides certain resolution to kin of victims in the protests, it may not significantly ease the state's ideological splits.

"The fury directed at Sheikh Hasina and the the former ruling faction has not subsided," a civil liberties campaigner in Dhaka told press agencies. "Neither she nor the party has said sorry or shown any remorse for the fatalities of countless citizens."

She said "It makes it difficult for the faction to gain approval by a bulk of the population in this state."

The activist added that the penalty was not resolution for the families of those fatally and non-fatally harmed.

"We work with several people who underwent irreversible limb loss, they are now disabled, due to the crackdown. They cannot pardon her."

An analyst, a journalist and a long-time Bangladesh watcher, said the "inherent character of the guilty verdict could make it even more difficult" for Awami League to become a regular participant of the country's governance system again.

This might transform if "there is some kind of apology and a distancing from Hasina and the previous administration," he said.