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Bangladesh's former prime minister has been given a death sentence for crimes against humanity due to her crackdown on student-led protests which led to her forced departure.

The court convicted Sheikh Hasina of allowing lethal force to be used against protesters, among whom around 1,400 people died during the turmoil in the previous year.

Legal proceedings were conducted 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.

Prosecutors accused her of being behind hundreds of killings during the protests. The former leader rejected the entire case, calling the trial as "prejudiced and driven by politics".

The verdict marks a decisive point for Bangladesh, as the protests revealed fury over long-standing suppression. Relatives of the deceased and injured had demanded tough penalties.

Answering the judgment in a detailed document, 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 individual freedoms.

"I have no trepidation to meet my challengers in a fair court where the facts can be assessed and tested fairly."

The nation's capital, Dhaka, where the tribunal took place, was under tightened security prior to the verdict on Monday, with numerous opponents of Hasina holding a protest and cheering as the verdict was read.

Dhaka experienced a recent spike in disturbances, with dozens of bombs exploded and public transport vehicles burned in the period preceding the verdict.

One explosive incident was recorded in Dhaka on Monday morning, with no casualties reported, local police official the authorities' representative told news organizations.

The student-led uprising last year started with calls to eliminate public sector reservation policies but transformed into a more extensive dissent initiative.

UN human rights investigators stated in a document in February that the nearly 1,400 casualties could constitute "crimes against humanity".

The report documented the firing at close quarters of a number of activists, the deliberate maiming of further participants, unwarranted detentions and mistreatment.

Leaked audio of a telephone conversation involving Hasina verified by media examinations during the current year suggested she had sanctioned the use of "lethal weapons" in July 2024. The audio was played in court during the proceedings.

Before the decision, kin of those who died in the demonstrations stated to press outlets they wanted strict consequences for Hasina.

A family representative, whose sibling was killed in July 2024, said he wanted "severe penalty" for her and co-accused who have "committed acts of vengeance and abused their power".

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

"Solely at that point the families of those killed [in the protests] will achieve closure in their hearts."

Following her removal, an caretaker administration led by economist Muhammad Yunus has taken charge. A parliamentary election is set for February 2026.

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

Hasina warned in the previous month that if the the League's representatives were banned from standing in the upcoming election, numerous would avoid the ballot.

The judgment creates a foreign relations issue for the neighboring countries. The Bangladesh government has asked her repatriation but so far India has shown no willingness to comply.

The legal representative assigned to her her legal counsel said he was "unhappy and desiring the verdict had been different".

"I cannot even contest because my represented individuals are away; which is why I am sad," he added.

The previous week, Hasina's lawyers said they had lodged a prompt application to the UN pointing out major judicial fairness and legal procedure concerns at the ICT.

Hasina was tried alongside her previous domestic affairs official and security forces head.

Although the punishment grants partial finality to kin of victims in the protests, it may have minimal effect on calming the nation's partisan rifts.

"The anger against Hasina and the the former ruling faction has not diminished," a Dhaka-based rights activist informed news organizations. "Both she and the organization has said sorry or shown any remorse for the deaths of numerous individuals."

She said "This creates challenges for the faction to gain approval by a most citizens in this nation."

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

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

A journalist, an observer of Bangladeshi affairs, said the "fundamental aspect of the condemnation could make it particularly hard" for the political faction to become a regular participant of Bangladeshi politics again.

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