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The ex-prime minister of Bangladesh has been handed capital punishment for human rights violations stemming from her severe measures on protests led by students which led to her forced departure.

Hasina was declared culpable of allowing lethal force to be used against protesters, among whom around 1,400 people died during the unrest in the previous year.

Legal proceedings were conducted without her presence by the International Crimes Tribunal (ICT) in Bangladesh, since she went into exile in India after being removed from office in July 2024.

Prosecutors accused her of being responsible for hundreds of killings during the protests. She has refuted the entire case, describing the process as "unfair and agenda-driven".

The verdict marks a pivotal moment for Bangladesh, as the protests brought forth resentment over extended periods of oppression. Relatives of the deceased and wounded had demanded severe punishments.

Reacting to the verdict in a five-page statement, she expressed the execution sentence was the caretaker administration's way of "nullifying [her party] the Awami League" as a electoral entity and that she was content of her administration's performance on individual freedoms.

"I do not fear to face my accusers in a fair court where the proof can be evaluated and reviewed impartially."

The capital, Dhaka, where the tribunal took place, was under tightened security ahead of the ruling on Monday, with many of Hasina's critics staging a rally and cheering as the judgment was announced.

Dhaka experienced a recent spike in turmoil, with dozens of bombs exploded and public transport vehicles burned in the time before the verdict.

At least one bomb explosion was reported in Dhaka on Monday morning, with zero injuries documented, area law enforcement officer the police spokesperson stated to media outlets.

The protest movement led by students during 2024 started with requests to remove government job quotas but transformed into a broader opposition campaign.

International human rights monitors declared in an analysis in February that the nearly 1,400 casualties could amount to "crimes against humanity".

The study recorded the firing at close quarters of some protesters, the deliberate maiming of further participants, arbitrary arrests and abuse.

Disclosed sound files of a call made by the former leader verified by investigative sources in previous months implied she had authorized the use of "fatal instruments" in July 2024. The recording was presented in court during the legal process.

Before the decision, kin of those killed during the protests stated to news agencies they wanted strict consequences for Hasina.

One relative, whose sibling was killed in July 2024, said he wanted "exemplary punishment" for the former leader and associates who have "committed acts of vengeance and misused their authority".

A different family member, whose husband was killed near Dhaka in August 2024, said she wanted her penalty to be "implemented before the election".

"Only then the families of those killed [in the protests] will obtain solace in their souls."

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

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

The former leader cautioned in the previous month that if the the League's representatives were barred from participating in the upcoming election, countless would abstain the ballot.

The verdict now poses a international dilemma for both nations. The Bangladesh government has asked her return but to date India has expressed no readiness to acquiesce.

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

"I am unable to challenge because my defendants are not present; for that reason I am sad," he added.

Last week, Hasina's lawyers said they had lodged a prompt application to the UN highlighting significant due process and judicial process problems at the ICT.

Legal proceedings involved Hasina together with her ex-interior minister and security forces head.

While the sentence grants partial finality to kin of victims in the protests, it may have minimal effect on calming the nation's partisan rifts.

"The fury directed at the former leader and the her political party has not diminished," a civil liberties campaigner in Dhaka stated to press agencies. "Neither she nor the party has apologised or displayed repentance for the deaths of numerous individuals."

She said "This complicates matters for the faction to gain approval by a bulk of the population in this country."

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

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

An analyst, a journalist and a long-time Bangladesh watcher, 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 could alter if "an expression of regret occurs and a disassociation with the former leader and the previous administration," he said.