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Bangladesh's former prime minister has been given a death sentence for atrocities over her crackdown on protests led by students which resulted in her forced departure.

The court convicted Sheikh Hasina of allowing lethal force to be used against activists, among whom around 1,400 people died during the turmoil last year.

The trial proceeded in absentia by the special international tribunal in Bangladesh, as she resides in exile in India after being removed from office in July 2024.

Legal authorities charged her of being responsible for hundreds of killings during the protests. The former leader rejected every accusation, calling the trial as "unfair and agenda-driven".

The decision signifies a critical juncture for Bangladesh, as the protests brought forth resentment over years of repression. Families of those killed and wounded had called for severe punishments.

Responding to the decision in a detailed document, she expressed the execution sentence was the interim government's way of "nullifying [her party] the Awami League" as a electoral entity and that she was satisfied of her administration's performance on civil liberties.

"I do not fear to meet my challengers in a just legal forum 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 numerous opponents of Hasina holding a protest and celebrating as the judgment was announced.

Dhaka experienced a notable rise in turmoil, with multiple explosives detonated 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, local police official the authorities' representative told news organizations.

The protest movement led by students in the previous year started with requests to remove state employment quotas but evolved into a broader opposition campaign.

United Nations rights examiners declared in an analysis in February that the nearly 1,400 casualties could amount to "crimes against humanity".

The paper detailed the shooting at point-blank range of some protesters, the deliberate maiming of others, unjustified apprehensions and mistreatment.

Leaked audio of a telephone conversation involving Hasina authenticated by media examinations in previous months suggested she had sanctioned the use of "fatal instruments" in July 2024. The sound file was broadcast in court during the proceedings.

Prior to the ruling, relatives of those who died in the demonstrations told news agencies they wanted Hasina to be punished severely.

A family representative, whose brother was shot dead in July 2024, said he wanted "strict sentence" for Hasina and others who have "committed acts of vengeance and abused their power".

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

"Solely at that point the relatives of the deceased [in the protests] will achieve closure in their minds."

Since Hasina's ousting, an caretaker administration under the guidance of Nobel laureate Muhammad Yunus has assumed power. A national vote is scheduled for February 2026.

However, the Awami League, her political faction, was banned by Bangladesh's temporary leadership in May.

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

The judgment creates a foreign relations issue for the neighboring countries. Dhaka has formally requested her repatriation but to date India has expressed no readiness to agree.

Hasina's state-appointed lawyer her legal counsel said he was "sad [and wishes] the verdict had been different".

"I cannot even contest because my represented individuals are away; which is why I am disheartened," he stated further.

Last week, Hasina's lawyers said they had filed an urgent appeal to the UN highlighting significant due process and due process issues at the ICT.

The former leader faced trial together with her previous domestic affairs official and police chief.

While the sentence offers some closure to families of killed in the protests, it may not significantly ease the country's political divisions.

"The fury directed at Hasina and the Awami League has not diminished," a Dhaka-based rights activist stated to media outlets. "Both she and the organization has apologised or displayed repentance for the deaths of numerous individuals."

The advocate declared "This creates challenges for the party to be accepted by a bulk of the population in this nation."

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

"We work with several people who underwent irreversible limb loss, they are amputees now, as a result of the harsh measures. They cannot pardon her."

A journalist, an observer of Bangladeshi affairs, said the "inherent character of the guilty verdict could make it even more difficult" for her party to become a normal feature of Bangladeshi politics again.

This may change if "there is some kind of apology and a distancing from Hasina and the previous administration," he expressed.