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Bangladesh's former prime minister has been handed capital punishment for human rights violations stemming from her crackdown on student-led protests which led to her forced departure.

The court convicted Sheikh Hasina of allowing lethal force to be used against activists, among whom around 1,400 people lost their lives during the disturbances in the previous year.

Hasina was tried without her presence by the International Crimes Tribunal (ICT) in Bangladesh, since she went into exile in India following her ouster in July 2024.

Legal authorities charged her of being responsible for numerous deaths during the protests. The former leader rejected all charges, calling the trial as "prejudiced and driven by politics".

This judgment represents a pivotal moment for Bangladesh, as the protests brought forth resentment over years of repression. Relatives of the deceased and harmed had called for tough penalties.

Responding to the decision in a detailed document, she expressed the capital punishment was the caretaker administration's way of "eliminating her political faction" as a governing body and that she was satisfied of her government's record on individual freedoms.

"I have no trepidation to confront those accusing me in a proper tribunal where the evidence can be weighed and tested fairly."

Bangladesh's main city, Dhaka, where the legal proceedings occurred, was under tightened security prior to the verdict on Monday, with several of her detractors holding a protest and celebrating as the verdict was read.

Dhaka experienced a notable rise in disturbances, with multiple explosives detonated and public transport vehicles burned in the days leading up to the verdict.

At least one bomb explosion was recorded in Dhaka on Monday morning, with zero injuries documented, regional security representative Jisanul Haque told news organizations.

The youth-driven revolt during 2024 began with demands to abolish public sector reservation policies but evolved into a wider anti-government movement.

International human rights monitors declared in an analysis in February that the nearly 1,400 casualties could amount to "violations of human dignity".

The paper detailed the gunfire from minimal distance of a number of activists, the intentional injuring of further participants, unwarranted detentions and mistreatment.

Leaked audio of a call made by the former leader authenticated by external reviews during the current year implied she had approved the use of "lethal weapons" in July 2024. The audio was played in court during the legal process.

Prior to the ruling, family members of those killed during the protests stated to media representatives they wanted strict consequences for Hasina.

A family representative, whose sibling was killed in July 2024, said he wanted "severe penalty" for the former leader and associates who have "performed revengeful deeds and exploited their positions".

A different family member, whose partner was fatally injured near Dhaka in August 2024, said she wanted the former leader's punishment to be "executed before the election".

"Only then the kin of victims [in the protests] will find peace in their souls."

After her departure, an interim government headed by economist Muhammad Yunus has taken charge. A parliamentary election is scheduled for February 2026.

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

Hasina warned during the past month that if the the League's representatives were banned from standing in the upcoming election, numerous would avoid the vote.

The verdict now poses a international dilemma for both nations. Dhaka has formally requested her extradition but so far India has expressed no readiness to acquiesce.

The legal representative assigned to her her legal counsel said he was "unhappy and desiring the decision had been otherwise".

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

The previous week, her legal team 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 alongside her previous domestic affairs official 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 nation's partisan rifts.

"The resentment towards the former leader and the Awami League has not diminished," a civil liberties campaigner in Dhaka stated to press agencies. "The leader and her faction has said sorry or demonstrated contrition for the killings of hundreds of people."

The activist stated "It makes it difficult for the faction to gain approval by a majority of people in this nation."

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

"We assist several people who underwent irreversible limb loss, they are amputees now, due to the crackdown. They cannot pardon her."

David Bergman, a journalist and a long-time Bangladesh watcher, 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 might transform if "a form of contrition emerges and a distancing from the former leader and the former hierarchy," he expressed.