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Bangladesh's former prime minister has been sentenced to death for human rights violations due to her harsh response on protests led by students which led to her forced departure.

Hasina was declared culpable of permitting fatal actions to be used against protesters, 1,400 of whom lost their lives during the unrest in the previous year.

The trial proceeded without her presence by the special international tribunal in Bangladesh, as she resides in exile in India after being removed from office in July 2024.

Legal authorities charged 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 unleashed anger over long-standing suppression. Next of kin of victims and harmed had requested severe punishments.

Responding to the decision in a five-page statement, the former leader stated the death penalty was the caretaker administration's way of "eliminating her political faction" as a governing body and that she was content of her administration's performance on human rights.

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

Bangladesh's main city, Dhaka, where the court convened, was under enhanced protection before the decision on Monday, with several of her detractors staging a rally and cheering as the judgment was announced.

The capital witnessed a recent spike in turmoil, with numerous incendiary devices set off and buses set on fire in the days leading up to the verdict.

One explosive incident was reported in Dhaka on Monday morning, with no casualties reported, area law enforcement officer the authorities' representative stated to news organizations.

The youth-driven revolt in the previous year started with requests to remove state employment quotas but morphed into a more extensive dissent initiative.

UN human rights investigators declared in an analysis in February that the nearly 1,400 casualties could amount to "crimes against humanity".

The study recorded the gunfire from minimal distance of certain demonstrators, the purposeful disabling of others, arbitrary arrests and abuse.

Leaked audio of one of Hasina's phone calls authenticated by external reviews during the current year suggested she had sanctioned the use of "fatal instruments" in July 2024. The sound file was broadcast in court during the trial.

Prior to the ruling, kin of those who died in the demonstrations told media representatives they wanted the former leader to face strict penalties.

A family representative, 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 exploited their positions".

Lucky Akther, whose spouse died near Dhaka in August 2024, said she wanted Hasina's sentence to be "carried out before the election".

"Exclusively thereafter the families of those killed [in the protests] will obtain solace in their hearts."

Since Hasina's ousting, an temporary leadership led by economic expert Muhammad Yunus has assumed power. A parliamentary election is scheduled for February 2026.

However, the her former political organization, Hasina's political party, was outlawed by Bangladesh's temporary leadership in May.

She alerted during the past month that if the party's candidates were banned from standing in the forthcoming vote, countless would abstain the ballot.

This decision presents a foreign relations issue for both nations. Dhaka has formally requested her return but so far India has demonstrated no inclination to agree.

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

"I even cannot appeal because my clients are absent; for that reason I am sad," he continued.

The previous week, Hasina's lawyers said they had lodged a prompt application to the UN highlighting serious fair trial and due process issues at the ICT.

The former leader faced trial in conjunction with her ex-interior minister and police chief.

While the sentence grants partial finality to kin of victims in the protests, it may have minimal effect on calming the country's political divisions.

"The resentment towards Sheikh Hasina and the Awami League has not diminished," a Dhaka-based rights activist stated to news organizations. "Both she and the organization has expressed regret or shown any remorse for the fatalities of countless citizens."

The advocate declared "This complicates matters for the faction to gain approval by a most citizens in this country."

The advocate continued that the penalty was not finality for the families of those who died and were wounded.

"We work with multiple individuals who suffered permanent amputations, they are currently without limbs, as a result of the harsh measures. They cannot pardon her."

An analyst, an observer of Bangladeshi affairs, said the "inherent character of the guilty verdict could make it increasingly challenging" for the political faction to become a standard element of the country's governance system again.

This could alter if "an expression of regret occurs and a disassociation with Hasina and the former hierarchy," he said.