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The ex-prime minister of Bangladesh has been sentenced to death for atrocities over her severe measures on student-led protests which resulted in her removal from power.

The court convicted Sheikh Hasina of allowing lethal force to be used against demonstrators, with approximately 1,400 individuals died during the disturbances during 2024.

Legal proceedings were conducted in absentia by the International Crimes Court in Bangladesh, as she resides in exile in India after being removed from office in July 2024.

Legal authorities charged her of being the mastermind of multiple fatalities during the protests. The former leader rejected all charges, calling the trial as "biased and politically motivated".

The verdict marks a pivotal moment for Bangladesh, as the protests brought forth resentment over years of repression. Families of those killed and injured had demanded severe punishments.

Responding to the decision in a detailed document, Hasina said the execution sentence was the interim government's way of "nullifying [her party] the Awami League" as a electoral entity and that she was proud of her government's record on civil liberties.

"I have no trepidation to meet my challengers in a proper tribunal where the evidence can be weighed and reviewed impartially."

The capital, Dhaka, where the legal proceedings occurred, was under increased safeguards before the ruling on Monday, with many of Hasina's critics holding a protest and cheering as the verdict was read.

Dhaka experienced a sudden increase in unrest, with numerous incendiary devices set off and buses set on fire in the days leading up to the verdict.

At least one bomb explosion was recorded in Dhaka on Monday morning, with no casualties reported, area law enforcement officer Jisanul Haque stated to news organizations.

The youth-driven revolt during 2024 began with demands to abolish government job quotas but transformed into a more extensive dissent initiative.

UN human rights investigators declared in an analysis in February that the around 1,400 fatalities could represent "violations of human dignity".

The report documented the gunfire from minimal distance of certain demonstrators, the purposeful disabling of others, unwarranted detentions and abuse.

Disclosed sound files of a call made by the former leader verified by media examinations earlier this year indicated she had sanctioned the use of "fatal instruments" in July 2024. The recording was presented in court during the legal process.

Ahead of the verdict, relatives of those fatally injured in the unrest informed media representatives they wanted strict consequences for Hasina.

Ramjan Ali, whose sibling was killed in July 2024, said he wanted "severe penalty" for the former leader and associates who have "engaged in retaliatory actions and abused their power".

A different family member, whose partner was fatally injured near Dhaka in August 2024, said she wanted her penalty to be "carried out before the election".

"Solely at that point the kin of victims [in the protests] will obtain solace in their minds."

After her departure, an temporary leadership under the guidance of Nobel laureate Muhammad Yunus has assumed power. A general election is scheduled for February 2026.

However, the her former political organization, the former ruling party, was prohibited by Bangladesh's interim government in May.

She alerted in the previous month that if the her faction's nominees were barred from participating in the imminent electoral process, countless would abstain the election.

The judgment creates a foreign relations issue for both nations. Dhaka has formally requested her extradition but to date India has expressed no readiness to acquiesce.

Her officially designated attorney her legal counsel said he was "sad [and wishes] the verdict had been different".

"I am unable to challenge because my defendants are not present; for that reason I am disappointed," he continued.

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

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

While the sentence grants partial finality to kin of victims in the protests, it may not significantly ease the nation's partisan rifts.

"The anger against Hasina and the her political party has not diminished," a civil liberties campaigner in Dhaka stated to media outlets. "Both she and the organization has apologised or demonstrated contrition for the killings of hundreds of people."

She said "This creates challenges for the faction to gain approval by a majority of people in this country."

The advocate continued that the punishment was not closure for the relatives of those who died and were wounded.

"We work with multiple individuals 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 "very nature of the conviction could make it particularly hard" for Awami League to become a normal feature of the nation's political landscape again.

This could alter if "a form of contrition emerges and a disassociation with Hasina and the former hierarchy," he expressed.