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The country's previous leader has been handed capital punishment for human rights violations over her crackdown on student-led protests which led to her removal from power.

Hasina was declared culpable of permitting fatal actions to be used against demonstrators, with approximately 1,400 individuals were killed during the disturbances in the previous year.

Legal proceedings were conducted in absentia by the special international tribunal in Bangladesh, as she resides in exile in India following her ouster in July 2024.

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

The verdict marks a critical juncture for Bangladesh, as the protests brought forth resentment over years of repression. Families of those killed and harmed had requested tough penalties.

Reacting to the verdict in a detailed document, she expressed the capital punishment was the interim government's way of "eradicating the Awami League" as a political force and that she was proud of her government's record on civil liberties.

"I have no trepidation to face my accusers in a proper tribunal where the facts can be assessed and reviewed impartially."

Bangladesh's main city, Dhaka, where the court convened, was under tightened security before the decision on Monday, with numerous opponents of Hasina holding a protest and applauding as the judgment was announced.

The capital witnessed a sudden increase in disturbances, with multiple explosives detonated 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, regional security representative Jisanul Haque informed news organizations.

The protest movement led by students during 2024 started with requests to remove state employment quotas but transformed into a wider anti-government movement.

UN human rights investigators declared in an analysis in February that the around 1,400 fatalities could represent "human rights atrocities".

The report documented the shooting at point-blank range of some protesters, the intentional injuring of additional individuals, arbitrary arrests and mistreatment.

Unauthorized recordings of a call made by the former leader authenticated by investigative sources earlier this year suggested she had sanctioned the use of "lethal weapons" in July 2024. The sound file was broadcast in court during the legal process.

Ahead of the verdict, family members of those killed during the protests told news agencies they wanted strict consequences for Hasina.

One relative, whose sibling was killed in July 2024, said he wanted "severe penalty" for Hasina and others who have "committed acts of vengeance 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".

"Only then the kin of victims [in the protests] will obtain solace in their hearts."

Since Hasina's ousting, an caretaker administration headed by economic expert Muhammad Yunus has assumed control. A parliamentary election is set for February 2026.

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

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

The judgment creates a international dilemma for both nations. Authorities have sought her return but so far India has demonstrated no inclination to agree.

Hasina's state-appointed lawyer the defense lawyer 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 disheartened," he added.

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

Hasina was tried alongside her ex-interior minister and security forces head.

Although the punishment provides certain resolution to families of killed in the protests, it may not significantly ease the state's ideological splits.

"The fury directed at Sheikh Hasina and the Awami League has not decreased," a civil liberties campaigner in Dhaka informed press agencies. "The leader and her faction has said sorry or shown any remorse for the fatalities of countless citizens."

The activist stated "This complicates matters for the faction to gain approval by a majority of people in this state."

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

"We support numerous persons who lost their limbs forever, they are currently without limbs, because of the suppression. They are incapable of excusing her."

A journalist, a journalist and a long-time Bangladesh watcher, said the "fundamental aspect of the condemnation could make it increasingly challenging" for her party to become a normal feature of the nation's political landscape again.

This may change if "a form of contrition emerges and a distancing from the former leader and the old leadership," he expressed.