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Bangladesh's former prime minister has been handed capital punishment for crimes against humanity over her harsh response on protests led by students which resulted in her removal from power.

Sheikh Hasina was found guilty of permitting fatal actions to be used against protesters, 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, having been exiled in India following her ouster in July 2024.

Legal authorities charged her of being behind numerous deaths during the protests. She has refuted every accusation, calling the trial as "biased and politically motivated".

The verdict marks a decisive point for Bangladesh, as the protests unleashed anger over years of repression. Relatives of the deceased and wounded had requested strict sentences.

Responding to the decision in a detailed document, Hasina said the execution sentence was the caretaker administration's way of "eliminating her political faction" as a governing body and that she was proud of her administration's performance on human rights.

"I have no trepidation to meet my challengers in a just legal forum where the proof can be evaluated and reviewed impartially."

The nation's capital, Dhaka, where the legal proceedings occurred, was under increased safeguards ahead of the decision on Monday, with numerous opponents of Hasina organizing a demonstration and cheering as the sentence was declared.

The capital witnessed a recent spike in disturbances, 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, regional security representative the authorities' representative informed media outlets.

The protest movement led by students in the previous year started with demands to abolish government job quotas but morphed into a broader opposition campaign.

International human rights monitors said in a report in February that the around 1,400 fatalities could represent "violations of human dignity".

The paper detailed the gunfire from minimal distance of some protesters, the intentional injuring of others, unjustified apprehensions and abuse.

Disclosed sound files of a telephone conversation involving Hasina authenticated by media examinations in previous months suggested she had authorized the use of "lethal weapons" in July 2024. The sound file was broadcast in court during the proceedings.

Ahead of the verdict, relatives of those fatally injured in the unrest stated to press outlets they wanted Hasina to be punished severely.

Ramjan Ali, whose family member was fatally wounded in July 2024, said he wanted "strict sentence" for her and co-accused who have "committed acts of vengeance and misused their authority".

Another relative, whose spouse died near Dhaka in August 2024, said she wanted Hasina's sentence to be "implemented before the election".

"Exclusively thereafter the relatives of the deceased [in the protests] will find peace in their minds."

Following her removal, an temporary leadership led by Nobel laureate Muhammad Yunus has assumed control. A parliamentary election is set for February 2026.

Nonetheless, the Awami League, Hasina's political party, was outlawed by Bangladesh's interim government in May.

Hasina warned during the past month that if the party's candidates were barred from participating in the imminent electoral process, millions would boycott the ballot.

The judgment creates a diplomatic challenge for India and Bangladesh. Dhaka has formally requested her extradition but to date India has shown no willingness to comply.

Her officially designated attorney her legal counsel said he was "unhappy and desiring the outcome had varied".

"I even cannot appeal because my defendants are not present; which is why I am disheartened," he continued.

Last week, Hasina's lawyers said they had filed an urgent appeal to the UN pointing out serious fair trial and due process issues at the ICT.

Hasina was tried alongside her ex-interior minister and security forces head.

Even though the verdict offers some closure to kin of victims in the protests, it may do little to soothe the country's political divisions.

"The resentment towards the former leader and the her political party has not diminished," a civil liberties campaigner in Dhaka stated to press agencies. "The leader and her faction has expressed regret or demonstrated contrition for the fatalities of countless citizens."

She said "It makes it difficult for the faction to gain approval by a majority of people in this state."

The activist added that the punishment was not resolution for the relatives of those who died and were wounded.

"We work with several people who suffered permanent amputations, they are now disabled, as a result of the harsh measures. They will never be able to forgive 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 her party to become a normal feature of the country's governance system again.

This could alter if "a form of contrition emerges and a disassociation with Hasina and the old leadership," he stated.