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The country's previous leader has been handed capital punishment for crimes against humanity due to her crackdown on student-led protests which caused her ousting.

Sheikh Hasina was found guilty of allowing lethal force to be used against demonstrators, 1,400 of whom were killed during the disturbances last year.

Legal proceedings were conducted in absentia by the special international tribunal in Bangladesh, as she resides in exile in India since she was forced from power in July 2024.

Prosecutors accused her of being responsible for numerous deaths during the protests. She has refuted every accusation, describing the process as "biased and politically motivated".

The decision signifies a critical juncture for Bangladesh, as the protests brought forth resentment over extended periods of oppression. Families of those killed and wounded had demanded strict sentences.

Reacting to the verdict in a comprehensive declaration, the former leader stated the capital punishment was the interim government's way of "nullifying [her party] the Awami League" as a political force and that she was content of her administration's performance on human rights.

"I have no trepidation to meet my challengers in a just legal forum where the facts can be assessed and examined justly."

Bangladesh's main city, Dhaka, where the legal proceedings occurred, was under tightened security prior to the verdict on Monday, with numerous opponents of Hasina staging a rally and applauding as the judgment was announced.

The capital witnessed a recent spike in disturbances, with numerous incendiary devices set off and coaches ignited in the period preceding the verdict.

At least one bomb explosion was recorded in Dhaka on Monday morning, with no victims identified, regional security representative the authorities' representative stated to press agencies.

The student-led uprising last year started with demands to abolish public sector reservation policies but morphed into a wider anti-government movement.

UN human rights investigators said in a report in February that the nearly 1,400 casualties could represent "crimes against humanity".

The study recorded the gunfire from minimal distance of some protesters, the intentional injuring of others, unwarranted detentions and torture.

Unauthorized recordings of a telephone conversation involving Hasina confirmed by external reviews during the current year indicated she had sanctioned the use of "deadly arms" in July 2024. The sound file was broadcast in court during the proceedings.

Prior to the ruling, family members of those fatally injured in the unrest informed press outlets they wanted Hasina to be punished severely.

A family representative, whose family member was fatally wounded in July 2024, said he wanted "exemplary punishment" for Hasina and others who have "engaged in retaliatory actions and misused their authority".

A different family member, whose spouse died near Dhaka in August 2024, said she wanted her penalty to be "implemented before the election".

"Only then the families of those killed [in the protests] will obtain solace in their minds."

After her departure, an caretaker administration led by economic expert Muhammad Yunus has taken charge. A national vote is planned for February 2026.

Nevertheless, the Hasina's political party, her political faction, was banned by Bangladesh's temporary leadership in May.

She alerted last month that if the party's candidates were prohibited from running in the imminent electoral process, millions would boycott the vote.

The judgment creates a foreign relations issue for the neighboring countries. Dhaka has formally requested her extradition but until now India has shown no willingness to acquiesce.

Hasina's state-appointed lawyer her legal counsel said he was "unhappy and desiring the outcome had varied".

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

Last week, her legal team said they had filed an urgent appeal to the UN pointing out significant due process and legal procedure concerns at the ICT.

Hasina was tried in conjunction with her ex-interior minister and security forces head.

Although the punishment offers some closure to relatives of the deceased in the protests, it may not significantly ease the state's ideological splits.

"The resentment towards Sheikh Hasina and the her political party has not subsided," a Dhaka-based rights activist told press agencies. "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 organization to receive endorsement by a most citizens in this country."

The advocate continued that the sentence was not resolution for the relatives of those fatally and non-fatally harmed.

"We support several people who lost their limbs forever, they are now disabled, due to the crackdown. They cannot pardon her."

David Bergman, a journalist and a long-time Bangladesh watcher, said the "inherent character of the guilty verdict could make it particularly hard" for her party to become a normal feature of Bangladeshi politics again.

This could alter if "there is some kind of apology and a separation from Sheikh Hasina and the old leadership," he said.