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Bangladesh's former prime minister has been sentenced to death for atrocities due to her severe measures on protests led by students which resulted in her forced departure.

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

The trial proceeded in absentia by the International Crimes Court in Bangladesh, as she resides in exile in India following her ouster in July 2024.

Legal authorities charged her of being behind hundreds of killings during the protests. Hasina has denied every accusation, labeling the proceedings as "prejudiced and driven by politics".

The verdict marks a critical juncture for Bangladesh, as the protests unleashed anger over extended periods of oppression. Next of kin of victims and harmed had demanded tough penalties.

Reacting to the verdict in a detailed document, the former leader stated the execution sentence was the interim government's way of "eliminating her political faction" as a electoral entity and that she was content of her government's record on human rights.

"I am not afraid to face my accusers in a fair court where the proof can be evaluated and reviewed impartially."

The nation's capital, Dhaka, where the tribunal took place, was under tightened security ahead of the ruling on Monday, with numerous opponents of Hasina holding a protest and cheering as the sentence was declared.

The capital witnessed a notable rise in disturbances, with numerous incendiary devices set off and buses set on fire in the time before the verdict.

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

The youth-driven revolt in the previous year began with requests to remove public sector reservation policies but evolved into a more extensive dissent initiative.

UN human rights investigators declared in an analysis in February that the approximately 1,400 deaths could represent "crimes against humanity".

The report documented the shooting at point-blank range of certain demonstrators, the deliberate maiming of further participants, arbitrary arrests and torture.

Leaked audio of a telephone conversation involving Hasina verified by media examinations during the current year suggested she had authorized the use of "fatal instruments" in July 2024. The sound file was broadcast in court during the trial.

Ahead of the verdict, relatives of those fatally injured in the unrest told media representatives they wanted Hasina to be punished severely.

Ramjan Ali, whose family member was fatally wounded in July 2024, said he wanted "severe penalty" for the former leader and associates who have "engaged in retaliatory actions and misused their authority".

Lucky Akther, whose husband was killed near Dhaka in August 2024, said she wanted her penalty to be "carried out before the election".

"Only then the kin of victims [in the protests] will achieve closure in their hearts."

Following her removal, an interim government headed by Nobel laureate Muhammad Yunus has assumed power. A parliamentary election is scheduled for February 2026.

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

Hasina warned during the past month that if the party's candidates were prohibited from running in the upcoming election, millions would boycott the ballot.

The judgment creates a foreign relations issue for the neighboring countries. The Bangladesh government has asked her return but so far India has shown no willingness to agree.

Her officially designated attorney the defense lawyer said he was "disappointed and hoping the decision had been otherwise".

"I even cannot appeal because my represented individuals are away; that's why I am sad," he stated further.

Recently, her legal team said they had lodged a prompt application to the UN highlighting major judicial fairness and due process issues at the ICT.

Legal proceedings involved Hasina in conjunction with her ex-interior minister and security forces head.

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

"The fury directed at Hasina and the the former ruling faction has not diminished," a civil liberties campaigner in Dhaka told press agencies. "Both she and the organization 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 state."

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

"We assist multiple individuals who suffered permanent amputations, they are amputees now, due to the crackdown. They cannot pardon her."

An analyst, a journalist and a long-time Bangladesh watcher, said the "fundamental aspect of the condemnation could make it particularly hard" for the political faction to become a regular participant of Bangladeshi politics again.

This could alter if "a form of contrition emerges and a distancing from the former leader and the previous administration," he expressed.