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The country's previous leader has been given a death sentence for atrocities due to her harsh response on protests led by students which resulted in her ousting.

The court convicted Sheikh Hasina of authorizing deadly measures to be used against demonstrators, among whom around 1,400 people were killed during the disturbances during 2024.

Hasina was tried without her presence by the special international tribunal in Bangladesh, having been exiled in India since she was forced from power in July 2024.

Prosecutors accused her of being the mastermind of hundreds of killings during the protests. Hasina has denied all charges, describing the process as "prejudiced and driven by politics".

This judgment represents a critical juncture for Bangladesh, as the protests brought forth resentment over long-standing suppression. Relatives of the deceased and wounded had demanded strict sentences.

Reacting to the verdict in a five-page statement, she expressed 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 government's record on individual freedoms.

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

The nation's capital, Dhaka, where the legal proceedings occurred, was under tightened security before the decision on Monday, with numerous opponents of Hasina organizing a demonstration and celebrating as the sentence was declared.

The city has seen a notable rise in turmoil, with multiple explosives detonated and coaches ignited in the period preceding the verdict.

A minimum of one detonation was reported in Dhaka on Monday morning, with no casualties reported, local police official the police spokesperson informed press agencies.

The protest movement led by students in the previous year started with requests to remove state employment quotas but transformed into a more extensive dissent initiative.

International human rights monitors stated in a document in February that the around 1,400 fatalities could represent "crimes against humanity".

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

Unauthorized recordings of a telephone conversation involving Hasina confirmed by investigative sources in previous months suggested she had sanctioned the use of "fatal instruments" in July 2024. The audio was played in court during the trial.

Ahead of the verdict, relatives of those fatally injured in the unrest informed news agencies they wanted Hasina to be punished severely.

Ramjan Ali, whose family member was fatally wounded in July 2024, said he wanted "strict sentence" for her and co-accused who have "performed revengeful deeds and exploited their positions".

A different family member, whose spouse died near Dhaka in August 2024, said she wanted Hasina's sentence to be "executed before the election".

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

After her departure, an interim government under the guidance of economic expert Muhammad Yunus has taken charge. A parliamentary election is planned for February 2026.

However, the Hasina's political party, her political faction, was prohibited by Bangladesh's caretaker administration in May.

The former leader cautioned last month that if the her faction's nominees were banned from standing in the imminent electoral process, millions would boycott the election.

This decision presents a international dilemma for India and Bangladesh. Dhaka has formally requested her extradition but until now India has demonstrated no inclination to acquiesce.

Her officially designated attorney Mohammad Amir Hossain said he was "sad [and wishes] the decision had been otherwise".

"I even cannot appeal because my represented individuals are away; for that reason I am sad," he stated further.

Last week, her legal team said they had lodged a prompt application to the UN raising major judicial fairness and due process issues at the ICT.

Legal proceedings involved Hasina alongside her former home minister and top law enforcement officer.

While the sentence offers some closure to kin of victims in the protests, it may do little to soothe the nation's partisan rifts.

"The anger against Sheikh Hasina and the Awami League has not subsided," a civil liberties campaigner in Dhaka stated to media outlets. "Both she and the organization has apologised or shown any remorse for the killings of hundreds of people."

The advocate declared "It makes it difficult for the faction to gain approval by a bulk of the population in this state."

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

"We support numerous persons who lost their limbs forever, they are now disabled, because of the suppression. They will never be able to forgive her."

A journalist, a journalist and a long-time Bangladesh watcher, said the "inherent character of the guilty verdict could make it particularly hard" for her party to become a normal feature of the nation's political landscape again.

This could alter if "an expression of regret occurs and a distancing from the former leader and the old leadership," he stated.