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Bangladesh's former prime minister has been handed capital punishment for atrocities due to her harsh response on youth demonstrations which caused her removal from power.

The court convicted Sheikh Hasina of authorizing deadly measures to be used against activists, 1,400 of whom died during the disturbances last year.

Hasina was tried in absentia by the International Crimes Court in Bangladesh, as she resides in exile in India since she was forced from power in July 2024.

Prosecutors accused her of being the mastermind of hundreds of killings during the protests. She has refuted every accusation, calling the trial as "unfair and agenda-driven".

The decision signifies a decisive point for Bangladesh, as the protests unleashed anger over long-standing suppression. Next of kin of victims and injured had requested severe punishments.

Reacting to the verdict in a five-page statement, she expressed the capital punishment was the temporary leadership's way of "eradicating the Awami League" as a governing body and that she was satisfied of her leadership's history on human rights.

"I do not fear to meet my challengers in a proper tribunal where the evidence can be weighed and examined justly."

The nation's capital, Dhaka, where the tribunal took place, was under increased safeguards prior to the decision on Monday, with many of Hasina's critics staging a rally and applauding as the judgment was announced.

Dhaka experienced a notable rise in disturbances, with multiple explosives detonated and buses set on fire in the time before the verdict.

A minimum of one detonation was recorded in Dhaka on Monday morning, with zero injuries documented, local police official Jisanul Haque stated to press agencies.

The protest movement led by students in the previous year commenced through calls to eliminate government job quotas but morphed into a more extensive dissent initiative.

International human rights monitors said in a report in February that the approximately 1,400 deaths could constitute "human rights atrocities".

The paper detailed the shooting at point-blank range of some protesters, the purposeful disabling of additional individuals, arbitrary arrests and mistreatment.

Leaked audio of a call made by the former leader verified by media examinations earlier this year indicated she had approved the use of "lethal weapons" in July 2024. The sound file was broadcast in court during the legal process.

Before the decision, relatives of those killed during the protests informed news agencies they wanted Hasina to be punished severely.

A family representative, whose family member was fatally wounded in July 2024, said he wanted "strict sentence" for Hasina and others who have "performed revengeful deeds and exploited their positions".

Lucky Akther, whose partner was fatally injured near Dhaka in August 2024, said she wanted the former leader's punishment to be "carried out before the election".

"Solely at that point the kin of victims [in the protests] will find peace in their minds."

Since Hasina's ousting, an caretaker administration led by economic expert Muhammad Yunus has assumed control. A parliamentary election is scheduled for February 2026.

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

She alerted in the previous month that if the the League's representatives were barred from participating in the imminent electoral process, countless would abstain the ballot.

The verdict now poses a diplomatic challenge for both nations. Authorities have sought her return but until now India has shown no willingness to comply.

Her officially designated attorney Mohammad Amir Hossain said he was "sad [and wishes] the verdict had been different".

"I cannot even contest because my represented individuals are away; for that reason I am disappointed," he continued.

Recently, Hasina's lawyers said they had filed an urgent appeal to the UN highlighting major judicial fairness and judicial process problems at the ICT.

The former leader faced trial in conjunction with her previous domestic affairs official and police chief.

While the sentence grants partial finality to kin of victims in the protests, it may do little to soothe the country's political divisions.

"The anger against the former leader and the her political party has not decreased," a human rights advocate from the capital told news organizations. "Both she and the organization has apologised or displayed repentance for the fatalities of countless citizens."

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

The activist added that the penalty was not resolution for the kin of those who died and were wounded.

"We work with numerous persons who underwent irreversible limb loss, they are currently without limbs, because of the suppression. They are incapable of excusing her."

An analyst, a journalist and a long-time Bangladesh watcher, said the "very nature of the conviction could make it increasingly challenging" for her party to become a normal feature of the nation's political landscape again.

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