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The ex-prime minister of Bangladesh has been handed capital punishment for crimes against humanity stemming from her harsh response on student-led protests which caused her removal from power.

The court convicted Sheikh Hasina of allowing lethal force to be used against activists, among whom around 1,400 people were killed during the disturbances during 2024.

Hasina was tried in absentia by the International Crimes Court in Bangladesh, having been exiled in India since she was forced from power in July 2024.

Prosecutors accused her of being the mastermind of hundreds of killings during the protests. Hasina has denied all charges, describing the process as "prejudiced and driven by politics".

This judgment represents a pivotal moment for Bangladesh, as the protests brought forth resentment over years of repression. Relatives of the deceased and injured had demanded tough penalties.

Answering the judgment in a comprehensive declaration, the former leader stated the capital punishment was the temporary leadership's way of "eradicating the Awami League" as a governing body and that she was proud of her leadership's history on civil liberties.

"I do not fear to meet my challengers in a fair court where the evidence can be weighed and examined justly."

The capital, Dhaka, where the court convened, was under enhanced protection before the decision on Monday, with several of her detractors staging a rally and celebrating as the sentence was declared.

Dhaka experienced a recent spike in disturbances, with numerous incendiary devices set off and buses set on fire in the period preceding the verdict.

One explosive incident was recorded in Dhaka on Monday morning, with zero injuries documented, local police official Jisanul Haque informed press agencies.

The protest movement led by students during 2024 began with demands to abolish government job quotas but evolved into a more extensive dissent initiative.

UN human rights investigators declared in an analysis in February that the approximately 1,400 deaths could constitute "human rights atrocities".

The paper detailed the gunfire from minimal distance of a number of activists, the intentional injuring of further participants, arbitrary arrests and abuse.

Unauthorized recordings of a call made by the former leader authenticated by media examinations earlier this year suggested she had sanctioned the use of "fatal instruments" in July 2024. The audio was played in court during the trial.

Before the decision, relatives of those killed during the protests told press outlets they wanted the former leader to face strict penalties.

One relative, whose sibling was killed in July 2024, said he wanted "strict sentence" for her and co-accused who have "committed acts of vengeance and abused their power".

Lucky Akther, whose husband was killed near Dhaka in August 2024, said she wanted Hasina's sentence to be "implemented 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 headed by economic expert Muhammad Yunus has assumed power. A national vote is scheduled for February 2026.

Nonetheless, the Hasina's political party, her political faction, was banned by Bangladesh's caretaker administration in May.

Hasina warned in the previous month that if the her faction's nominees were banned from standing in the upcoming election, countless would abstain the election.

This decision presents a foreign relations issue for both nations. The Bangladesh government has asked her repatriation but so far India has shown no willingness to agree.

Her officially designated attorney the defense lawyer said he was "unhappy and desiring the verdict had been different".

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

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

The former leader faced trial together with her ex-interior minister and security forces head.

Even though the verdict offers some closure to relatives of the deceased 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 human rights advocate from the capital stated to media outlets. "Neither she nor the party has said sorry or demonstrated contrition for the deaths of numerous individuals."

The activist stated "This creates challenges for the organization to receive endorsement by a most citizens in this nation."

The advocate continued that the penalty was not finality for the families of those fatally and non-fatally harmed.

"We support multiple individuals who lost their limbs forever, they are amputees now, because of the suppression. They are incapable of excusing her."

A journalist, a journalist and a long-time Bangladesh watcher, said the "very nature of the conviction could make it particularly hard" for her party to become a standard element of the nation's political landscape again.

This could alter if "an expression of regret occurs and a distancing from Hasina and the old leadership," he stated.