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

Hasina was declared culpable of allowing lethal force to be used against protesters, 1,400 of whom lost their lives during the disturbances during 2024.

Legal proceedings were conducted while she was absent by the special international tribunal in Bangladesh, since she went into exile in India following her ouster in July 2024.

The prosecution alleged of being behind multiple fatalities during the protests. Hasina has denied every accusation, labeling the proceedings as "prejudiced and driven by politics".

The verdict marks a decisive point for Bangladesh, as the protests unleashed anger over extended periods of oppression. Next of kin of victims and wounded had requested strict sentences.

Reacting to the verdict in a five-page statement, Hasina said the execution sentence was the interim government's way of "eliminating her political faction" as a governing body and that she was proud of her administration's performance on individual freedoms.

"I have no trepidation to face my accusers in a just legal forum where the proof can be evaluated and examined justly."

The capital, Dhaka, where the court convened, was under tightened security before the decision on Monday, with many of Hasina's critics organizing a demonstration and celebrating as the sentence was declared.

The city has seen a notable rise in unrest, with numerous incendiary devices set off and buses set on fire in the period preceding the verdict.

One explosive incident was reported in Dhaka on Monday morning, with no casualties reported, local police official the authorities' representative informed media outlets.

The student-led uprising during 2024 commenced through requests to remove state employment quotas but evolved into a wider anti-government movement.

UN human rights investigators stated in a document in February that the nearly 1,400 casualties could amount to "human rights atrocities".

The paper detailed the firing at close quarters of certain demonstrators, the purposeful disabling of further participants, unwarranted detentions and mistreatment.

Unauthorized recordings of a call made by the former leader authenticated by investigative sources during the current year implied she had approved the use of "fatal instruments" in July 2024. The sound file was broadcast in court during the legal process.

Before the decision, family members of those killed during the protests stated to media representatives they wanted Hasina to be punished severely.

A family representative, whose brother was shot dead in July 2024, said he wanted "exemplary punishment" 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 the former leader's punishment to be "implemented before the election".

"Exclusively thereafter the families of those killed [in the protests] will find peace in their souls."

Following her removal, an interim government headed by Nobel laureate Muhammad Yunus has taken charge. A parliamentary election is planned for February 2026.

Nonetheless, the her former political organization, Hasina's political party, was prohibited by Bangladesh's caretaker administration in May.

Hasina warned last month that if the her faction's nominees were banned from standing in the imminent electoral process, numerous would avoid the ballot.

The judgment creates a foreign relations issue for India and Bangladesh. The Bangladesh government has asked her repatriation but until now India has demonstrated no inclination to agree.

Hasina's state-appointed lawyer Mohammad Amir Hossain said he was "disappointed and hoping the verdict had been different".

"I even cannot appeal because my clients are absent; that's why I am disappointed," he continued.

The previous week, Hasina's lawyers said they had filed an urgent appeal to the UN raising major judicial fairness and judicial process problems at the ICT.

The former leader faced trial together with her former home minister and security forces head.

Even though the verdict offers some closure to families of killed in the protests, it may have minimal effect on calming the state's ideological splits.

"The fury directed at Sheikh Hasina and the Awami League has not decreased," a civil liberties campaigner in Dhaka told press agencies. "Both she and the organization has said sorry or shown any remorse for the deaths of numerous individuals."

She said "It makes it difficult for the faction to gain approval by a most citizens in this country."

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

"We work with several people who lost their limbs forever, they are amputees now, due to the crackdown. They are incapable of excusing her."

An analyst, a commentator on the nation's politics, said the "inherent character of the guilty verdict could make it increasingly challenging" for Awami League to become a normal feature of Bangladeshi politics again.

This may change if "an expression of regret occurs and a disassociation with the former leader and the old leadership," he expressed.