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The country's previous leader has been handed capital punishment for human rights violations stemming from her severe measures on student-led protests which led to her removal from power.

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

The trial proceeded without her presence by the special international tribunal in Bangladesh, having been exiled in India after being removed from office in July 2024.

Prosecutors accused her of being responsible for hundreds of killings during the protests. She has refuted the entire case, describing the process as "prejudiced and driven by politics".

The verdict marks a decisive point for Bangladesh, as the protests brought forth resentment over long-standing suppression. Families of those killed and injured had called for severe punishments.

Reacting to the verdict in a five-page statement, the former leader stated the death penalty was the interim government's way of "nullifying [her party] the Awami League" as a electoral entity and that she was satisfied of her leadership's history on civil liberties.

"I do not fear to face my accusers in a proper tribunal where the facts can be assessed and tested fairly."

The capital, Dhaka, where the tribunal took place, was under increased safeguards before the decision on Monday, with several of her detractors holding a protest and cheering as the verdict was read.

Dhaka experienced a notable rise in turmoil, with dozens of bombs exploded and coaches ignited in the time before the verdict.

A minimum of one detonation was noted in Dhaka on Monday morning, with no casualties reported, area law enforcement officer the authorities' representative told media outlets.

The student-led uprising during 2024 commenced through requests to remove public sector reservation policies but morphed into a more extensive dissent initiative.

International human rights monitors declared in an analysis in February that the nearly 1,400 casualties could amount to "violations of human dignity".

The report documented the firing at close quarters of certain demonstrators, the purposeful disabling of additional individuals, unjustified apprehensions and abuse.

Disclosed sound files of one of Hasina's phone calls verified by external reviews during the current year suggested she had sanctioned the use of "fatal instruments" in July 2024. The audio was played in court during the legal process.

Before the decision, relatives of those fatally injured in the unrest informed media representatives they wanted the former leader to face strict penalties.

Ramjan Ali, whose sibling was killed in July 2024, said he wanted "strict sentence" for Hasina and others who have "performed revengeful deeds and exploited their positions".

Another relative, whose spouse died near Dhaka in August 2024, said she wanted Hasina's sentence to be "implemented before the election".

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

Following her removal, an interim government under the guidance of Nobel laureate Muhammad Yunus has assumed power. A national vote is planned for February 2026.

However, the Awami League, the former ruling party, was prohibited by Bangladesh's temporary leadership in May.

Hasina warned last month that if the her faction's nominees were barred from participating in the imminent electoral process, countless would abstain the election.

This decision presents a foreign relations issue for the neighboring countries. Dhaka has formally requested her return but until now India has demonstrated no inclination to agree.

Her officially designated attorney her legal counsel said he was "disappointed and hoping the verdict had been different".

"I even cannot appeal because my clients are absent; which is why I am disheartened," he stated further.

Recently, Hasina's lawyers said they had filed an urgent appeal to the UN pointing out major judicial fairness and legal procedure concerns at the ICT.

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

Even though the verdict grants partial finality to families of killed in the protests, it may not significantly ease the nation's partisan rifts.

"The fury directed at the former leader and the Awami League has not subsided," a civil liberties campaigner in Dhaka informed news organizations. "Neither she nor the party has said sorry or shown any remorse for the fatalities of countless citizens."

The advocate declared "This complicates matters for the party to be accepted by a most citizens in this country."

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

"We assist multiple individuals who underwent irreversible limb loss, they are amputees now, as a result of the harsh measures. They are incapable of excusing her."

David Bergman, a journalist and a long-time Bangladesh watcher, said the "inherent character of the guilty verdict could make it even more difficult" for Awami League to become a standard element of the country's governance system again.

This may change if "a form of contrition emerges and a disassociation with Sheikh Hasina and the former hierarchy," he said.