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The ex-prime minister of Bangladesh has been sentenced to death for atrocities stemming from her harsh response on protests led by students which resulted in her ousting.

Hasina was declared culpable of authorizing deadly measures to be used against activists, among whom around 1,400 people lost their lives during the turmoil in the previous year.

Hasina was tried without her presence by the International Crimes Court 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 numerous deaths during the protests. Hasina has denied all charges, describing the process as "unfair and agenda-driven".

The decision signifies a decisive point for Bangladesh, as the protests revealed fury over years of repression. Families of those killed and injured had called for tough penalties.

Reacting to the verdict in a comprehensive declaration, she expressed the death penalty was the caretaker administration's way of "eradicating the Awami League" as a political force and that she was satisfied of her government's record on civil liberties.

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

Bangladesh's main city, Dhaka, where the tribunal took place, was under tightened security ahead of the verdict on Monday, with many of Hasina's critics holding a protest and applauding as the judgment was announced.

The city has seen a notable rise in unrest, with numerous incendiary devices set off 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 zero injuries documented, local police official the police spokesperson stated to press agencies.

The student-led uprising during 2024 began with demands to abolish government job quotas but morphed into a wider anti-government movement.

United Nations rights examiners stated in a document in February that the nearly 1,400 casualties could constitute "violations of human dignity".

The paper detailed the shooting at point-blank range of certain demonstrators, the intentional injuring of further participants, arbitrary arrests and torture.

Unauthorized recordings of a call made by the former leader verified by investigative sources earlier this year indicated she had approved the use of "lethal weapons" in July 2024. The recording was presented in court during the proceedings.

Before the decision, family members of those fatally injured in the unrest informed media representatives they wanted Hasina to be punished severely.

One relative, whose brother was shot dead in July 2024, said he wanted "severe penalty" for her and co-accused who have "engaged in retaliatory actions and abused their power".

Another relative, whose partner was fatally injured near Dhaka in August 2024, said she wanted her penalty to be "executed before the election".

"Exclusively thereafter the families of those killed [in the protests] will achieve closure in their minds."

After her departure, an caretaker administration headed by economic expert Muhammad Yunus has assumed control. A national vote is set for February 2026.

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

The former leader cautioned in the previous month that if the the League's representatives were barred from participating in the imminent electoral process, countless would abstain the vote.

The judgment creates a diplomatic challenge for both nations. The Bangladesh government has asked her repatriation but until now India has demonstrated no inclination to comply.

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

"I even cannot appeal because my defendants are not present; for that reason I am disheartened," he continued.

The previous week, Hasina's lawyers said they had submitted an immediate petition to the UN raising serious fair trial and legal procedure concerns at the ICT.

Legal proceedings involved Hasina together with her previous domestic affairs official and top law enforcement officer.

While the sentence offers some closure to kin of victims in the protests, it may have minimal effect on calming the state's ideological splits.

"The resentment towards the former leader and the her political party has not decreased," a civil liberties campaigner in Dhaka told press agencies. "Neither she nor the party has said sorry or shown any remorse for the deaths of numerous individuals."

The advocate declared "This complicates matters for the organization to receive endorsement by a most citizens in this nation."

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

"We assist numerous persons who suffered permanent amputations, they are currently without limbs, as a result of the harsh measures. They are incapable of excusing her."

An analyst, a journalist and a long-time Bangladesh watcher, said the "fundamental aspect of the condemnation could make it even more difficult" 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 disassociation with Hasina and the old leadership," he said.