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The ex-prime minister of Bangladesh has been handed capital punishment for atrocities due to her crackdown on youth demonstrations which resulted in her ousting.

The court convicted Sheikh Hasina of permitting fatal actions to be used against activists, with approximately 1,400 individuals lost their lives during the disturbances during 2024.

Legal proceedings were conducted in absentia by the special international tribunal in Bangladesh, since she went into exile in India since she was forced from power in July 2024.

The prosecution alleged of being responsible for hundreds of killings during the protests. The former leader rejected every accusation, labeling the proceedings as "biased and politically motivated".

This judgment represents a decisive point for Bangladesh, as the protests brought forth resentment over long-standing suppression. Relatives of the deceased and injured had called for severe punishments.

Responding to the decision in a detailed document, Hasina said the capital punishment was the interim government's way of "eliminating her political faction" as a electoral entity and that she was satisfied of her leadership's history on civil liberties.

"I have no trepidation to face my accusers in a just legal forum where the facts can be assessed and examined justly."

Bangladesh's main city, Dhaka, where the court convened, was under tightened security before the decision on Monday, with several of her detractors holding a protest and cheering as the judgment was announced.

The city has seen a notable rise in disturbances, with numerous incendiary devices set off and public transport vehicles burned in the days leading up to the verdict.

One explosive incident was noted in Dhaka on Monday morning, with no casualties reported, regional security representative the police spokesperson stated to news organizations.

The protest movement led by students in the previous year started with requests to remove public sector reservation policies but morphed into a more extensive dissent initiative.

United Nations rights examiners stated in a document in February that the nearly 1,400 casualties could represent "crimes against humanity".

The report documented the shooting at point-blank range of certain demonstrators, the intentional injuring of additional individuals, arbitrary arrests and mistreatment.

Disclosed sound files of a call made by the former leader confirmed by investigative sources earlier this year implied she had approved the use of "lethal weapons" in July 2024. The audio was played in court during the proceedings.

Before the decision, family members of those fatally injured in the unrest stated to press outlets they wanted the former leader to face strict penalties.

Ramjan Ali, whose family member was fatally wounded in July 2024, said he wanted "severe penalty" for the former leader and associates who have "performed revengeful deeds and misused their authority".

Another relative, whose partner was fatally injured near Dhaka in August 2024, said she wanted the former leader's punishment to be "implemented before the election".

"Only then the relatives of the deceased [in the protests] will achieve closure in their souls."

Since Hasina's ousting, an caretaker administration headed 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 election.

The judgment creates a international dilemma for India and Bangladesh. The Bangladesh government has asked her return but to date India has expressed no readiness to comply.

Her officially designated attorney Mohammad Amir Hossain said he was "sad [and wishes] the verdict had been different".

"I even cannot appeal because my defendants are not present; that's why I am sad," he stated further.

Last week, the defense attorneys said they had lodged a prompt application to the UN pointing out significant due process and legal procedure concerns at the ICT.

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

While the sentence offers some closure to families of killed in the protests, it may not significantly ease the nation's partisan rifts.

"The fury directed at the former leader and the her political party has not diminished," a Dhaka-based rights activist told news organizations. "The leader and her faction has apologised or displayed repentance for the deaths of numerous individuals."

She said "It makes it difficult for the party to be accepted by a majority of people in this country."

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

"We work with several people who lost their limbs forever, they are amputees now, due to the crackdown. They cannot pardon her."

An analyst, an observer of Bangladeshi affairs, said the "inherent character of the guilty verdict could make it even more difficult" for the political faction to become a normal feature of the nation's political landscape again.

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