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Bangladesh's former prime minister has been sentenced to death for atrocities due to her harsh response on youth demonstrations which resulted in her forced departure.

Sheikh Hasina was found guilty of permitting fatal actions to be used against protesters, 1,400 of whom lost their lives during the turmoil 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.

The prosecution alleged of being responsible for multiple fatalities during the protests. Hasina has denied every accusation, labeling the proceedings as "unfair and agenda-driven".

The verdict marks a pivotal moment for Bangladesh, as the protests revealed fury over years of repression. Families of those killed and harmed had called for severe punishments.

Responding to the decision in a comprehensive declaration, Hasina said the execution sentence was the temporary leadership's way of "eliminating her political faction" as a electoral entity and that she was proud of her leadership's history on civil liberties.

"I am not afraid to confront those accusing me in a proper tribunal where the proof can be evaluated and examined justly."

Bangladesh's main city, Dhaka, where the tribunal took place, was under tightened security ahead of the ruling on Monday, with many of Hasina's critics organizing a demonstration and cheering as the judgment was announced.

The city has seen a sudden increase in turmoil, with numerous incendiary devices set off and buses set on fire in the days leading up to the verdict.

At least one bomb explosion was noted in Dhaka on Monday morning, with zero injuries documented, area law enforcement officer the authorities' representative stated to news organizations.

The youth-driven revolt during 2024 commenced through demands to abolish government job quotas but morphed into a wider anti-government movement.

UN human rights investigators declared in an analysis in February that the nearly 1,400 casualties could constitute "violations of human dignity".

The paper detailed the gunfire from minimal distance of certain demonstrators, the purposeful disabling of further participants, unwarranted detentions and mistreatment.

Disclosed sound files of a call made by the former leader confirmed by media examinations during the current year implied she had approved the use of "deadly arms" in July 2024. The sound file was broadcast in court during the trial.

Prior to the ruling, relatives of those killed during the protests told media representatives they wanted Hasina to be punished severely.

One relative, whose sibling was killed in July 2024, said he wanted "strict sentence" for Hasina and others who have "performed revengeful deeds and misused their authority".

Lucky Akther, whose husband was killed near Dhaka in August 2024, said she wanted Hasina's sentence to be "implemented before the election".

"Only then the relatives of the deceased [in the protests] will find peace in their souls."

After her departure, an temporary leadership under the guidance of economic expert Muhammad Yunus has taken charge. A general election is planned for February 2026.

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

She alerted during the past month that if the her faction's nominees were barred from participating in the imminent electoral process, numerous would avoid the election.

The judgment creates a diplomatic challenge for both nations. Authorities have sought her return but to date India has expressed no readiness to agree.

Her officially designated attorney Mohammad Amir Hossain said he was "disappointed and hoping the decision had been otherwise".

"I am unable to challenge because my clients are absent; that's why I am disheartened," he continued.

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

The former leader faced trial together with her former home minister and police chief.

Although the punishment offers some closure to relatives of the deceased in the protests, it may not significantly ease the country's political divisions.

"The resentment towards Sheikh Hasina and the Awami League has not subsided," a Dhaka-based rights activist told press agencies. "The leader and her faction has expressed regret or demonstrated contrition 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 nation."

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

"We support multiple individuals who underwent irreversible limb loss, they are currently without limbs, due to the crackdown. They are incapable of excusing 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 standard element of the country's governance system again.

This might transform if "there is some kind of apology and a separation from the former leader and the previous administration," he stated.