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The country's previous leader has been given a death sentence for atrocities due to her harsh response on protests led by students which led to her removal from power.

The court convicted Sheikh Hasina of allowing lethal force to be used against activists, among whom around 1,400 people were killed during the turmoil in the previous year.

The trial proceeded without her presence by the special international tribunal in Bangladesh, since she went into exile in India since she was forced from power in July 2024.

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

The verdict marks a critical juncture for Bangladesh, as the protests brought forth resentment over extended periods of oppression. Relatives of the deceased and harmed had requested tough penalties.

Responding to the decision in a comprehensive declaration, the former leader stated the capital punishment was the caretaker administration'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 have no trepidation to confront those accusing me in a fair court where the facts can be assessed and tested fairly."

Bangladesh's main city, Dhaka, where the legal proceedings occurred, was under enhanced protection before the ruling on Monday, with many of Hasina's critics staging a rally and celebrating as the sentence was declared.

Dhaka experienced a sudden increase in turmoil, with numerous incendiary devices set off and coaches ignited in the days leading up to the verdict.

At least one bomb explosion was recorded in Dhaka on Monday morning, with no victims identified, local police official the authorities' representative informed news organizations.

The youth-driven revolt during 2024 started with calls to eliminate state employment quotas but morphed into a broader opposition campaign.

UN human rights investigators declared in an analysis in February that the around 1,400 fatalities could amount to "violations of human dignity".

The report documented the gunfire from minimal distance of some protesters, the deliberate maiming of others, unwarranted detentions and torture.

Leaked audio of a telephone conversation involving Hasina verified by media examinations in previous months implied she had authorized the use of "fatal instruments" in July 2024. The audio was played in court during the legal process.

Prior to the ruling, family members of those fatally injured in the unrest informed media representatives they wanted the former leader to face strict penalties.

Ramjan Ali, whose sibling was killed in July 2024, said he wanted "severe penalty" for her and co-accused who have "performed revengeful deeds and exploited their positions".

Lucky Akther, whose partner was fatally injured near Dhaka in August 2024, said she wanted her penalty to be "implemented before the election".

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

After her departure, an caretaker administration under the guidance of economic expert Muhammad Yunus has assumed power. A parliamentary election is set for February 2026.

Nevertheless, the Awami League, her political faction, was prohibited by Bangladesh's temporary leadership in May.

The former leader cautioned last month that if the party's candidates were banned from standing in the forthcoming vote, millions would boycott the vote.

This decision presents a foreign relations issue for the neighboring countries. Authorities have sought her repatriation 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 am unable to challenge because my defendants are not present; which is why I am sad," he continued.

Recently, the defense attorneys said they had lodged a prompt application to the UN raising significant due process and due process issues at the ICT.

The former leader faced trial alongside her previous domestic affairs official and security forces head.

While the sentence provides certain resolution to families of killed in the protests, it may do little to soothe the country's political divisions.

"The fury directed at Sheikh Hasina and the the former ruling faction has not decreased," a human rights advocate from the capital informed press agencies. "Neither she nor the party has apologised or demonstrated contrition for the fatalities of countless citizens."

She said "It makes it difficult for the organization to receive endorsement by a bulk of the population in this state."

The advocate continued that the sentence was not closure for the families of those killed and injured.

"We assist several people who underwent irreversible limb loss, they are currently without limbs, because of the suppression. They will never be able to forgive her."

A journalist, an observer of Bangladeshi affairs, said the "inherent character of the guilty verdict could make it particularly hard" for Awami League to become a standard element of the nation's political landscape again.

This may change if "an expression of regret occurs and a distancing from Hasina and the previous administration," he expressed.