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The country's previous leader has been given a death sentence for atrocities stemming from her severe measures on youth demonstrations which resulted in her forced departure.

Sheikh Hasina was found guilty of permitting fatal actions to be used against activists, among whom around 1,400 people died during the unrest during 2024.

Hasina was tried in absentia by the International Crimes Court in Bangladesh, since she went into exile in India since she was forced from power in July 2024.

Legal authorities charged her of being the mastermind of multiple fatalities during the protests. Hasina has denied every accusation, labeling the proceedings as "unfair and agenda-driven".

This judgment represents a decisive point for Bangladesh, as the protests brought forth resentment over years of repression. Next of kin of victims and injured had requested tough penalties.

Reacting to the verdict in a detailed document, she expressed the capital punishment was the temporary leadership's way of "eliminating her political faction" as a political force and that she was satisfied of her government's record on human rights.

"I have no trepidation to face my accusers in a fair court where the evidence can be weighed and examined justly."

Bangladesh's main city, Dhaka, where the legal proceedings occurred, was under enhanced protection ahead of the verdict on Monday, with numerous opponents of Hasina staging a rally and applauding as the sentence was declared.

The capital witnessed a notable rise in unrest, with numerous incendiary devices set off and coaches ignited in the period preceding the verdict.

One explosive incident was noted in Dhaka on Monday morning, with no casualties reported, area law enforcement officer the authorities' representative informed media outlets.

The student-led uprising during 2024 started with requests to remove public sector reservation policies but evolved into a wider anti-government movement.

International human rights monitors stated in a document in February that the around 1,400 fatalities could represent "violations of human dignity".

The study recorded the gunfire from minimal distance of a number of activists, the intentional injuring of additional individuals, unjustified apprehensions and torture.

Leaked audio of a telephone conversation involving Hasina authenticated by external reviews earlier this year indicated she had sanctioned the use of "lethal weapons" in July 2024. The recording was presented in court during the legal process.

Ahead of the verdict, family members of those killed during the protests informed press outlets they wanted Hasina to be punished severely.

Ramjan Ali, whose brother was shot dead in July 2024, said he wanted "exemplary punishment" for the former leader and associates who have "committed acts of vengeance and misused their authority".

Lucky Akther, whose husband was killed near Dhaka in August 2024, said she wanted Hasina's sentence to be "carried out before the election".

"Only then the families of those killed [in the protests] will obtain solace in their hearts."

Since Hasina's ousting, an interim government under the guidance of Nobel laureate Muhammad Yunus has assumed power. A parliamentary election is scheduled for February 2026.

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

The former leader cautioned in the previous month that if the party's candidates were prohibited from running in the imminent electoral process, countless would abstain the ballot.

The verdict now poses a foreign relations issue for the neighboring countries. The Bangladesh government has asked her repatriation but until now India has expressed no readiness to acquiesce.

The legal representative assigned to her her legal counsel said he was "disappointed and hoping the decision had been otherwise".

"I am unable to challenge because my clients are absent; for that reason I am disappointed," he stated further.

Recently, her legal team said they had filed an urgent appeal to the UN raising major judicial fairness and due process issues at the ICT.

Hasina was tried together with her ex-interior minister and police chief.

Although the punishment offers some closure to kin of victims in the protests, it may have minimal effect on calming the country's political divisions.

"The anger against Hasina and the her political party has not diminished," a Dhaka-based rights activist told press agencies. "Neither she nor the party has said sorry or displayed repentance for the killings of hundreds of people."

The advocate declared "This complicates matters for the organization to receive endorsement by a bulk of the population in this nation."

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

"We support multiple individuals who suffered permanent amputations, they are currently without limbs, because of the suppression. They will never be able to forgive her."

An analyst, an observer of Bangladeshi affairs, said the "fundamental aspect of the condemnation could make it particularly hard" for her party to become a normal feature of the nation's political landscape again.

This may change if "there is some kind of apology and a separation from Sheikh Hasina and the previous administration," he stated.