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Bangladesh's former prime minister has been given a death sentence for human rights violations over her harsh response on student-led protests which led to her forced departure.

Sheikh Hasina was found guilty of permitting fatal actions to be used against activists, among whom around 1,400 people died during the disturbances in the previous year.

Legal proceedings were conducted without her presence by the special international tribunal in Bangladesh, since she went into exile in India since she was forced from power in July 2024.

The prosecution alleged of being the mastermind of multiple fatalities during the protests. The former leader rejected all charges, labeling the proceedings as "unfair and agenda-driven".

The decision signifies a decisive point for Bangladesh, as the protests brought forth resentment over long-standing suppression. Families of those killed and injured had requested tough penalties.

Answering the judgment in a detailed document, she expressed the death penalty was the caretaker administration's way of "eliminating her political faction" as a governing body and that she was content of her leadership's history on human rights.

"I do not fear to meet my challengers in a fair court where the evidence can be weighed and examined justly."

The nation's capital, Dhaka, where the legal proceedings occurred, was under tightened security ahead of the ruling on Monday, with several of her detractors organizing a demonstration and cheering as the sentence was declared.

Dhaka experienced a notable rise in unrest, with dozens of bombs exploded and coaches ignited in the days leading up to the verdict.

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

The student-led uprising in the previous year began with demands to abolish state employment quotas but evolved into a broader opposition campaign.

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

The study recorded the shooting at point-blank range of some protesters, the intentional injuring of others, unwarranted detentions and abuse.

Unauthorized recordings of a call made by the former leader verified by investigative sources in previous months indicated she had approved the use of "deadly arms" in July 2024. The sound file was broadcast in court during the legal process.

Before the decision, relatives of those fatally injured in the unrest told media representatives they wanted Hasina to be punished severely.

Ramjan Ali, whose sibling was killed in July 2024, said he wanted "severe penalty" for the former leader and associates who have "performed revengeful deeds and misused their authority".

Lucky Akther, 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 achieve closure in their hearts."

Following her removal, an interim government led by economic expert Muhammad Yunus has assumed control. A parliamentary election is set for February 2026.

Nevertheless, the Hasina's political party, Hasina's political party, was prohibited by Bangladesh's caretaker administration in May.

The former leader cautioned in the previous month that if the party's candidates were barred from participating in the upcoming election, millions would boycott the vote.

The judgment creates a international dilemma for both nations. Authorities have sought her repatriation but to date India has shown no willingness to acquiesce.

The legal representative assigned to her 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 sad," he added.

The previous week, her legal team said they had filed an urgent appeal to the UN highlighting major judicial fairness and judicial process problems at the ICT.

Hasina was tried alongside her ex-interior minister and top law enforcement officer.

While the sentence offers some closure to relatives of the deceased in the protests, it may have minimal effect on calming the state's ideological splits.

"The anger against the former leader and the her political party has not subsided," a civil liberties campaigner in Dhaka told news organizations. "Both she and the organization has expressed regret or shown any remorse for the killings of hundreds of people."

She said "This creates challenges for the faction to gain approval by a most citizens in this nation."

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

"We support numerous persons who underwent irreversible limb loss, they are now disabled, due to the crackdown. They cannot pardon 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 standard element of the country's governance system again.

This could alter if "there is some kind of apology and a separation from the former leader and the old leadership," he expressed.