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Bangladesh's former prime minister has been handed capital punishment for human rights violations due to her crackdown on protests led by students which led to her ousting.

Hasina was declared culpable of permitting fatal actions to be used against activists, among whom around 1,400 people died during the unrest in the previous year.

Hasina was tried while she was absent by the International Crimes Tribunal (ICT) in Bangladesh, as she resides in exile in India after being removed from office in July 2024.

Prosecutors accused her of being behind numerous deaths during the protests. The former leader rejected all charges, labeling the proceedings as "biased and politically motivated".

The decision signifies a pivotal moment for Bangladesh, as the protests brought forth resentment over extended periods of oppression. Relatives of the deceased and wounded had requested severe punishments.

Responding to the decision in a detailed document, Hasina said the execution sentence was the interim government's way of "eliminating her political faction" as a electoral entity and that she was satisfied of her administration's performance on individual freedoms.

"I am not afraid to confront those accusing me in a just legal forum where the proof can be evaluated and examined justly."

Bangladesh's main city, Dhaka, where the court convened, was under enhanced protection prior to the verdict on Monday, with many of Hasina's critics organizing a demonstration and celebrating as the judgment was announced.

Dhaka experienced a notable rise in unrest, with numerous incendiary devices set off and coaches ignited in the days leading up to the verdict.

At least one bomb explosion was noted in Dhaka on Monday morning, with no casualties reported, area law enforcement officer the police spokesperson stated to press agencies.

The protest movement led by students in the previous year began with demands to abolish government job quotas but morphed into a wider anti-government movement.

UN human rights investigators stated in a document in February that the nearly 1,400 casualties could represent "human rights atrocities".

The study recorded the gunfire from minimal distance of certain demonstrators, the purposeful disabling of others, arbitrary arrests and mistreatment.

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

Prior to the ruling, family members of those who died in the demonstrations stated to news agencies they wanted strict consequences for Hasina.

One relative, whose brother was shot dead in July 2024, said he wanted "strict sentence" for the former leader and associates who have "performed revengeful deeds and misused their authority".

Another relative, whose husband was killed near Dhaka in August 2024, said she wanted the former leader's punishment to be "executed before the election".

"Exclusively thereafter the relatives of the deceased [in the protests] will find peace in their souls."

Since Hasina's ousting, an temporary leadership headed by economic expert Muhammad Yunus has assumed control. A general election is planned for February 2026.

However, the her former political organization, the former ruling party, was banned by Bangladesh's caretaker administration in May.

She alerted last month that if the the League's representatives were prohibited from running in the imminent electoral process, countless would abstain the ballot.

This decision presents a foreign relations issue for the neighboring countries. Authorities have sought her return but so far India has expressed no readiness to comply.

Hasina's state-appointed lawyer 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 disappointed," he added.

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

Legal proceedings involved Hasina in conjunction with her former home minister and security forces head.

Even though the verdict grants partial finality to families of killed in the protests, it may do little to soothe the nation's partisan rifts.

"The anger against the former leader and the Awami League has not decreased," a civil liberties campaigner in Dhaka told press agencies. "Neither she nor the party has said sorry or displayed repentance for the killings of hundreds of people."

She said "This complicates matters for the party to be accepted by a majority of people in this state."

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

"We work with several people who suffered permanent amputations, they are amputees now, due to the crackdown. They cannot pardon her."

An analyst, an observer of Bangladeshi affairs, said the "very nature of the conviction could make it even more difficult" for Awami League to become a standard element of the country's governance system again.

This could alter if "an expression of regret occurs and a disassociation with Sheikh Hasina and the old leadership," he said.