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The ex-prime minister of Bangladesh has been handed capital punishment for atrocities over her crackdown on protests led by students which resulted in her forced departure.

The court convicted Sheikh Hasina of permitting fatal actions to be used against activists, among whom around 1,400 people lost their lives during the turmoil during 2024.

Legal proceedings were conducted while she was absent by the International Crimes Tribunal (ICT) in Bangladesh, as she resides in exile in India since she was forced from power in July 2024.

Legal authorities charged her of being behind hundreds of killings during the protests. Hasina has denied all charges, labeling the proceedings as "biased and politically motivated".

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 demanded strict sentences.

Reacting to the verdict in a detailed document, the former leader stated the death penalty was the interim government's way of "eradicating the Awami League" as a electoral entity and that she was satisfied of her administration's performance on individual freedoms.

"I am not afraid to confront those accusing me in a fair court where the evidence can be weighed and reviewed impartially."

Bangladesh's main city, Dhaka, where the tribunal took place, was under enhanced protection ahead of the ruling on Monday, with numerous opponents of Hasina staging a rally and cheering as the sentence was declared.

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

A minimum of one detonation was reported in Dhaka on Monday morning, with zero injuries documented, local police official the police spokesperson stated to news organizations.

The protest movement led by students last year started with demands to abolish government job quotas but transformed into a broader opposition campaign.

UN human rights investigators declared in an analysis in February that the approximately 1,400 deaths could amount to "human rights atrocities".

The study recorded the shooting at point-blank range of certain demonstrators, the purposeful disabling of additional individuals, arbitrary arrests and torture.

Unauthorized recordings of one of Hasina's phone calls confirmed by external reviews in previous months suggested she had approved the use of "lethal weapons" in July 2024. The recording was presented in court during the legal process.

Prior to the ruling, family members of those who died in the demonstrations stated to press outlets they wanted Hasina to be punished severely.

One relative, whose brother was shot dead in July 2024, said he wanted "strict sentence" for her and co-accused who have "committed acts of vengeance and misused their authority".

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

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

After her departure, an temporary leadership under the guidance of economic expert Muhammad Yunus has assumed power. A national vote is scheduled for February 2026.

Nevertheless, the Awami League, the former ruling party, was banned by Bangladesh's caretaker administration in May.

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

The verdict now poses a foreign relations issue for India and Bangladesh. The Bangladesh government has asked her return but so far India has demonstrated no inclination to agree.

The legal representative assigned to her Mohammad Amir Hossain said he was "disappointed and hoping the verdict had been different".

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

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

Legal proceedings involved Hasina in conjunction with her former home minister and security forces head.

Even though the verdict offers some closure to relatives of the deceased in the protests, it may not significantly ease the state's ideological splits.

"The anger against Hasina and the the former ruling faction has not decreased," a civil liberties campaigner in Dhaka informed news organizations. "Neither she nor the party has expressed regret or displayed repentance for the killings of hundreds of people."

She said "This complicates matters for the party to be accepted by a majority of people in this country."

The activist added that the penalty was not closure for the kin of those who died and were wounded.

"We assist multiple individuals who underwent irreversible limb loss, they are amputees now, because of the suppression. They will never be able to forgive her."

David Bergman, a journalist and a long-time Bangladesh watcher, said the "very nature of the conviction could make it even more difficult" for her party to become a standard element of the nation's political landscape again.

This may change if "there is some kind of apology and a separation from Sheikh Hasina and the former hierarchy," he said.