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The country's previous leader has been given a death sentence for human rights violations due to her crackdown on protests led by students which caused her ousting.

The court convicted Sheikh Hasina of permitting fatal actions to be used against demonstrators, 1,400 of whom died during the turmoil in the previous year.

The trial proceeded without her presence by the special international tribunal in Bangladesh, since she went into exile in India following her ouster in July 2024.

Legal authorities charged her of being behind hundreds of killings during the protests. Hasina has denied every accusation, describing the process as "biased and politically motivated".

This judgment represents a decisive point for Bangladesh, as the protests revealed fury over extended periods of oppression. Families of those killed and wounded had demanded severe punishments.

Answering the judgment in a five-page statement, Hasina said the death penalty was the interim government's way of "nullifying [her party] the Awami League" as a political force and that she was proud of her administration's performance on individual freedoms.

"I do not fear to confront those accusing me in a proper tribunal where the evidence can be weighed and examined justly."

The capital, Dhaka, where the legal proceedings occurred, was under tightened security prior to the decision on Monday, with numerous opponents of Hasina staging a rally and celebrating as the judgment was announced.

The city has seen a notable rise in turmoil, with numerous incendiary devices set off and buses set on fire in the time before the verdict.

One explosive incident was noted in Dhaka on Monday morning, with no casualties reported, local police official the authorities' representative told press agencies.

The youth-driven revolt in the previous year commenced through requests to remove government job quotas but morphed into a broader opposition campaign.

United Nations rights examiners declared in an analysis in February that the approximately 1,400 deaths could constitute "crimes against humanity".

The report documented the shooting at point-blank range of some protesters, the intentional injuring of others, unjustified apprehensions and torture.

Disclosed sound files of a telephone conversation involving Hasina confirmed by media examinations earlier this year suggested she had authorized the use of "fatal instruments" in July 2024. The recording was presented in court during the trial.

Before the decision, relatives of those who died in the demonstrations informed news agencies they wanted Hasina to be punished severely.

A family representative, whose family member was fatally wounded in July 2024, said he wanted "strict sentence" for the former leader and associates who have "performed revengeful deeds and exploited their positions".

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

"Solely at that point the relatives of the deceased [in the protests] will obtain solace in their souls."

After her departure, an temporary leadership led by economist Muhammad Yunus has taken charge. A general election is set for February 2026.

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

Hasina warned in the previous month that if the the League's representatives were prohibited from running in the upcoming election, numerous would avoid the election.

The verdict now poses a diplomatic challenge for the neighboring countries. Authorities have sought her return but until now India has shown no willingness to comply.

The legal representative assigned to her the defense lawyer said he was "sad [and wishes] the outcome had varied".

"I cannot even contest because my defendants are not present; for that reason I am disappointed," he continued.

Recently, the defense attorneys said they had submitted an immediate petition to the UN pointing out major judicial fairness and judicial process problems at the ICT.

Hasina was tried in conjunction with her ex-interior minister and top law enforcement officer.

Although the punishment grants partial finality to relatives of the deceased in the protests, it may not significantly ease the country's political divisions.

"The fury directed at Sheikh Hasina and the her political party has not subsided," a Dhaka-based rights activist told press agencies. "Neither she nor the party has expressed regret or demonstrated contrition for the killings of hundreds of people."

She said "It makes it difficult for the organization to receive endorsement by a majority of people in this nation."

The activist added that the sentence was not closure for the kin of those fatally and non-fatally harmed.

"We work with numerous persons who underwent irreversible limb loss, they are now disabled, due to the crackdown. They are incapable of excusing her."

An analyst, a commentator on the nation's politics, said the "very nature of the conviction could make it particularly hard" for the political faction to become a regular participant of the nation's political landscape again.

This may change if "a form of contrition emerges and a distancing from Hasina and the former hierarchy," he expressed.