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The ex-prime minister of Bangladesh has been sentenced to death for human rights violations stemming from her harsh response on student-led protests which caused her forced departure.

The court convicted Sheikh Hasina of authorizing deadly measures to be used against activists, among whom around 1,400 people died during the turmoil last year.

Hasina was tried in absentia by the International Crimes Court in Bangladesh, having been exiled in India since she was forced from power in July 2024.

The prosecution alleged of being behind hundreds of killings during the protests. Hasina has denied all charges, calling the trial as "unfair and agenda-driven".

The verdict marks a decisive point for Bangladesh, as the protests unleashed anger over long-standing suppression. Families of those killed and wounded had demanded severe punishments.

Reacting to the verdict in a detailed document, the former leader stated the execution sentence was the caretaker administration's way of "eradicating the Awami League" as a political force and that she was content of her leadership's history on civil liberties.

"I am not afraid to meet my challengers in a fair court where the evidence can be weighed and reviewed impartially."

The capital, Dhaka, where the court convened, was under tightened security prior to the decision on Monday, with numerous opponents of Hasina holding a protest and applauding as the sentence was declared.

The city has seen a recent spike in unrest, with multiple explosives detonated and public transport vehicles burned in the time before the verdict.

One explosive incident was noted in Dhaka on Monday morning, with no victims identified, area law enforcement officer the authorities' representative told media outlets.

The youth-driven revolt during 2024 began with demands to abolish government job quotas but evolved into a wider anti-government movement.

United Nations rights examiners declared in an analysis in February that the nearly 1,400 casualties could represent "violations of human dignity".

The report documented the gunfire from minimal distance of some protesters, the purposeful disabling of additional individuals, arbitrary arrests and torture.

Unauthorized recordings of one of Hasina's phone calls authenticated by investigative sources earlier this year implied she had approved the use of "fatal instruments" in July 2024. The audio was played in court during the legal process.

Ahead of the verdict, family members of those killed during the protests informed media representatives they wanted strict consequences for Hasina.

A family representative, whose sibling was killed in July 2024, said he wanted "strict sentence" for her and co-accused who have "engaged in retaliatory actions and misused their authority".

Lucky Akther, whose husband was killed near Dhaka in August 2024, said she wanted her penalty to be "executed before the election".

"Exclusively thereafter the kin of victims [in the protests] will obtain solace in their souls."

Following her removal, an caretaker administration led by economic expert Muhammad Yunus has assumed control. A general election is planned for February 2026.

Nonetheless, the Hasina's political party, the former ruling party, was prohibited by Bangladesh's interim government in May.

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

The verdict now poses a foreign relations issue for the neighboring countries. Dhaka has formally requested her return but until now India has shown no willingness to acquiesce.

Her officially designated attorney the defense lawyer said he was "unhappy and desiring the verdict had been different".

"I am unable to challenge because my represented individuals are away; for that reason I am sad," he added.

Last week, her legal team said they had submitted an immediate petition to the UN highlighting significant due process and judicial process problems at the ICT.

Hasina was tried alongside her former home minister and police chief.

Although the punishment grants partial finality to kin of victims in the protests, it may not significantly ease the state's ideological splits.

"The anger against Hasina and the her political party has not decreased," a civil liberties campaigner in Dhaka informed media outlets. "Neither she nor the party has apologised or demonstrated contrition for the killings of hundreds of people."

The advocate declared "It makes it difficult for the organization to receive endorsement by a most citizens in this country."

The campaigner further stated that the sentence was not finality for the kin of those killed and injured.

"We support multiple individuals who suffered permanent amputations, they are now disabled, due to the crackdown. They cannot pardon her."

An analyst, a commentator on the nation's politics, said the "inherent character of the guilty verdict could make it particularly hard" 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 the former leader and the old leadership," he said.