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Bangladesh's former prime minister has been given a death sentence for crimes against humanity stemming from her crackdown on student-led protests which caused her removal from power.

Hasina was declared culpable of authorizing deadly measures to be used against activists, among whom around 1,400 people were killed during the disturbances in the previous year.

Legal proceedings were conducted in absentia by the International Crimes Court in Bangladesh, since she went into exile in India after being removed from office in July 2024.

Prosecutors accused her of being responsible for multiple fatalities during the protests. She has refuted all charges, describing the process as "biased and politically motivated".

This judgment represents a critical juncture for Bangladesh, as the protests brought forth resentment over extended periods of oppression. Next of kin of victims and injured had called for strict sentences.

Answering the judgment in a detailed document, the former leader stated the execution sentence was the temporary leadership's way of "eliminating her political faction" as a electoral entity and that she was content of her leadership's history on individual freedoms.

"I do not fear to meet my challengers in a proper tribunal where the proof can be evaluated and examined justly."

The capital, Dhaka, where the court convened, was under tightened security ahead of the decision on Monday, with numerous opponents of Hasina organizing a demonstration and celebrating as the sentence was declared.

Dhaka experienced a sudden increase in unrest, with dozens of bombs exploded and coaches ignited in the time before the verdict.

One explosive incident was recorded in Dhaka on Monday morning, with no casualties reported, area law enforcement officer 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 more extensive dissent initiative.

UN human rights investigators declared in an analysis in February that the around 1,400 fatalities could constitute "crimes against humanity".

The study recorded the shooting at point-blank range of certain demonstrators, the deliberate maiming of additional individuals, unjustified apprehensions and torture.

Unauthorized recordings of a telephone conversation involving Hasina authenticated by media examinations during the current year indicated she had sanctioned the use of "fatal instruments" in July 2024. The sound file was broadcast in court during the trial.

Prior to the ruling, kin of those who died in the demonstrations informed press outlets they wanted strict consequences for Hasina.

One relative, whose brother was shot dead in July 2024, said he wanted "severe penalty" for her and co-accused who have "engaged in retaliatory actions and misused their authority".

Another relative, whose husband was killed near Dhaka in August 2024, said she wanted her penalty to be "implemented before the election".

"Only then the relatives of the deceased [in the protests] will achieve closure in their minds."

Following her removal, an temporary leadership led by Nobel laureate Muhammad Yunus has assumed power. A national vote is scheduled for February 2026.

Nonetheless, the Awami League, the former ruling party, was banned by Bangladesh's temporary leadership in May.

She alerted last month that if the the League's representatives were banned from standing in the upcoming election, numerous would avoid the vote.

The judgment creates a diplomatic challenge for the neighboring countries. Authorities have sought her return but so far India has expressed no readiness to agree.

Her officially designated attorney Mohammad Amir Hossain said he was "disappointed and hoping the outcome had varied".

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

Recently, her legal team said they had submitted an immediate petition to the UN highlighting serious fair trial and due process issues at the ICT.

The former leader faced trial alongside her former home minister and security forces head.

Although the punishment offers some closure to kin of victims in the protests, it may do little to soothe the state's ideological splits.

"The resentment towards the former leader and the the former ruling faction has not decreased," a Dhaka-based rights activist stated to news organizations. "The leader and her faction has expressed regret or displayed repentance for the deaths of numerous individuals."

The advocate declared "This creates challenges for the party to be accepted by a majority of people in this country."

The advocate continued that the punishment was not finality for the families of those who died and were wounded.

"We work with several people who lost their limbs forever, they are currently without limbs, due to the crackdown. They cannot pardon her."

An analyst, an observer of Bangladeshi affairs, said the "fundamental aspect of the condemnation could make it increasingly challenging" for Awami League to become a regular participant of Bangladeshi politics again.

This might transform if "a form of contrition emerges and a disassociation with Hasina and the former hierarchy," he stated.