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Bangladesh's former prime minister has been given a death sentence for human rights violations over her crackdown on youth demonstrations which caused her ousting.

The court convicted Sheikh Hasina of permitting fatal actions to be used against activists, 1,400 of whom were killed during the unrest last year.

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

The prosecution alleged of being behind hundreds of killings during the protests. The former leader rejected every accusation, describing the process as "prejudiced and driven by politics".

This judgment represents a decisive point for Bangladesh, as the protests revealed fury over years of repression. Families of those killed and harmed had demanded severe punishments.

Reacting to the verdict in a comprehensive declaration, Hasina said the death penalty was the interim government's way of "eliminating her political faction" as a governing body and that she was content of her administration's performance on civil liberties.

"I am not afraid to meet my challengers in a just legal forum where the proof can be evaluated and examined justly."

The nation's capital, Dhaka, where the tribunal took place, was under enhanced protection ahead of the ruling on Monday, with numerous opponents of Hasina staging a rally and cheering as the judgment was announced.

The city has seen a recent spike in turmoil, with multiple explosives detonated and buses set on fire in the days leading up to the verdict.

At least one bomb explosion was recorded in Dhaka on Monday morning, with no victims identified, regional security representative Jisanul Haque stated to media outlets.

The student-led uprising during 2024 started with demands to abolish state employment quotas but morphed into a more extensive dissent initiative.

United Nations rights examiners declared in an analysis in February that the nearly 1,400 casualties could amount to "crimes against humanity".

The paper detailed the shooting at point-blank range of certain demonstrators, the purposeful disabling of additional individuals, unwarranted detentions and mistreatment.

Disclosed sound files of a telephone conversation involving Hasina confirmed by external reviews during the current year indicated she had sanctioned the use of "lethal weapons" in July 2024. The audio was played in court during the proceedings.

Ahead of the verdict, kin of those killed during the protests told press outlets they wanted Hasina to be punished severely.

One relative, whose family member was fatally wounded in July 2024, said he wanted "exemplary punishment" for the former leader and associates who have "committed acts of vengeance and exploited their positions".

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

After her departure, an caretaker administration headed by Nobel laureate Muhammad Yunus has assumed power. A general election is scheduled for February 2026.

Nonetheless, the Hasina's political party, her political faction, was outlawed by Bangladesh's caretaker administration in May.

Hasina warned during the past month that if the her faction's nominees were banned from standing in the upcoming election, countless would abstain the ballot.

The verdict now poses a foreign relations issue for the neighboring countries. Authorities have sought her return but until now India has demonstrated no inclination to agree.

Hasina's state-appointed lawyer her legal counsel said he was "disappointed and hoping the verdict had been different".

"I cannot even contest because my represented individuals are away; which is why I am sad," he continued.

The previous week, Hasina's lawyers 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 previous domestic affairs official and top law enforcement officer.

Even though the verdict offers some closure to relatives of the deceased in the protests, it may have minimal effect on calming the state's ideological splits.

"The anger against Hasina and the Awami League has not diminished," a Dhaka-based rights activist stated to media outlets. "The leader and her faction has apologised or shown any remorse for the fatalities of countless citizens."

The advocate declared "This complicates matters for the organization to receive endorsement by a bulk of the population in this nation."

The campaigner further stated that the sentence was not finality for the kin of those who died and were wounded.

"We support multiple individuals who underwent irreversible limb loss, they are currently without limbs, because of the suppression. They cannot pardon her."

David Bergman, an observer of Bangladeshi affairs, said the "very nature of the conviction could make it even more difficult" for the political faction to become a normal feature of the country's governance system again.

This might transform if "an expression of regret occurs and a disassociation with Sheikh Hasina and the old leadership," he expressed.