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The ex-prime minister of Bangladesh has been handed capital punishment for atrocities over her harsh response on student-led protests which caused her removal from power.

Sheikh Hasina was found guilty of permitting fatal actions to be used against demonstrators, 1,400 of whom lost their lives during the unrest during 2024.

Legal proceedings were conducted while she was absent by the International Crimes Court in Bangladesh, as she resides in exile in India after being removed from office in July 2024.

The prosecution alleged of being behind multiple fatalities 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 revealed fury over extended periods of oppression. Families of those killed and wounded had demanded strict sentences.

Responding to the decision in a five-page statement, she expressed the execution sentence was the temporary leadership's way of "eradicating the Awami League" as a political force and that she was content of her leadership's history on civil liberties.

"I am not afraid to face my accusers in a just legal forum where the facts can be assessed and reviewed impartially."

Bangladesh's main city, Dhaka, where the court convened, was under tightened security before the verdict on Monday, with several of her detractors staging a rally and cheering as the judgment was announced.

Dhaka experienced a notable rise in turmoil, with multiple explosives detonated and public transport vehicles burned in the time before the verdict.

At least one bomb explosion was noted in Dhaka on Monday morning, with no victims identified, area law enforcement officer the police spokesperson told news organizations.

The student-led uprising during 2024 started with demands to abolish state employment quotas but transformed into a broader opposition campaign.

United Nations rights examiners stated in a document in February that the nearly 1,400 casualties could represent "violations of human dignity".

The report documented the firing at close quarters of some protesters, the purposeful disabling of further participants, unwarranted detentions and mistreatment.

Unauthorized recordings of one of Hasina's phone calls confirmed by media examinations during the current year implied she had approved the use of "fatal instruments" in July 2024. The sound file was broadcast in court during the proceedings.

Ahead of the verdict, family members of those killed during the protests informed press outlets they wanted the former leader to face strict penalties.

Ramjan Ali, whose family member was fatally wounded in July 2024, said he wanted "severe penalty" for her and co-accused who have "performed revengeful deeds and misused their authority".

A different family member, whose partner was fatally injured near Dhaka in August 2024, said she wanted Hasina's sentence to be "implemented before the election".

"Exclusively thereafter the kin of victims [in the protests] will achieve closure in their hearts."

After her departure, an caretaker administration led by Nobel laureate Muhammad Yunus has taken charge. A general election is set for February 2026.

Nonetheless, the her former political organization, her political faction, was outlawed by Bangladesh's temporary leadership in May.

The former leader cautioned last month that if the her faction's nominees were banned from standing in the imminent electoral process, countless would abstain the vote.

The judgment creates a diplomatic challenge for the neighboring countries. Dhaka has formally requested her extradition but to date India has demonstrated no inclination to comply.

Her officially designated attorney her legal counsel said he was "disappointed and hoping the verdict had been different".

"I am unable to challenge because my defendants are not present; for that reason I am sad," he added.

The previous week, the defense attorneys said they had lodged a prompt application to the UN raising serious fair trial and legal procedure concerns at the ICT.

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

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 anger against Sheikh Hasina and the her political party has not subsided," a human rights advocate from the capital informed press agencies. "The leader and her faction has expressed regret or demonstrated contrition for the killings of hundreds of people."

The advocate declared "This complicates matters for the faction to gain approval by a most citizens in this country."

The advocate continued that the sentence was not finality for the relatives of those killed and injured.

"We support multiple individuals who suffered permanent amputations, they are currently without limbs, because of the suppression. They will never be able to forgive her."

David Bergman, an observer of Bangladeshi affairs, said the "fundamental aspect of the condemnation could make it particularly hard" for Awami League to become a normal feature of the country's governance system again.

This may change if "an expression of regret occurs and a distancing from the former leader and the old leadership," he stated.