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Bangladesh's former prime minister has been given a death sentence for human rights violations over her severe measures on student-led protests which caused her ousting.

Hasina was declared culpable of permitting fatal actions to be used against demonstrators, among whom around 1,400 people died during the disturbances last year.

Legal proceedings were conducted 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.

Legal authorities charged her of being responsible for hundreds of killings during the protests. The former leader rejected every accusation, calling the trial as "biased and politically motivated".

The decision signifies a critical juncture for Bangladesh, as the protests unleashed anger over extended periods of oppression. Next of kin of victims and harmed had requested severe punishments.

Answering the judgment in a comprehensive declaration, she expressed the death penalty was the interim government's way of "eliminating her political faction" as a governing body and that she was satisfied of her leadership's history on human rights.

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

The nation's capital, Dhaka, where the tribunal took place, was under enhanced protection prior to the ruling on Monday, with many of Hasina's critics organizing a demonstration and celebrating as the judgment was announced.

Dhaka experienced a recent spike in turmoil, with numerous incendiary devices set off and coaches ignited in the period preceding the verdict.

A minimum of one detonation was reported in Dhaka on Monday morning, with no casualties reported, area law enforcement officer the authorities' representative told media outlets.

The youth-driven revolt last year began with demands to abolish state employment quotas but evolved into a broader opposition campaign.

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

The report documented the firing at close quarters of a number of activists, the intentional injuring of others, unwarranted detentions and mistreatment.

Leaked audio of one of Hasina's phone calls authenticated by external reviews in previous months suggested she had sanctioned the use of "lethal weapons" in July 2024. The sound file was broadcast in court during the legal process.

Prior to the ruling, kin of those fatally injured in the unrest stated to press outlets they wanted the former leader to face strict penalties.

Ramjan Ali, whose sibling was killed in July 2024, said he wanted "exemplary punishment" for Hasina and others who have "committed acts of vengeance and exploited their positions".

Another relative, whose spouse died near Dhaka in August 2024, said she wanted her penalty to be "carried out before the election".

"Only then the relatives of the deceased [in the protests] will find peace in their hearts."

Since Hasina's ousting, an temporary leadership led by Nobel laureate Muhammad Yunus has assumed power. A national vote is scheduled for February 2026.

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

The former leader cautioned in the previous month that if the the League's representatives were prohibited from running in the imminent electoral process, millions would boycott the ballot.

The judgment creates a diplomatic challenge for the neighboring countries. The Bangladesh government has asked her repatriation but until now India has expressed no readiness to acquiesce.

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.

Recently, the defense attorneys said they had filed an urgent appeal to the UN pointing out serious fair trial and judicial process problems at the ICT.

The former leader faced trial together with her ex-interior minister and top law enforcement officer.

While the sentence provides certain resolution to relatives of the deceased in the protests, it may have minimal effect on calming the state's ideological splits.

"The resentment towards Hasina and the the former ruling faction has not decreased," a civil liberties campaigner in Dhaka informed news organizations. "Neither she nor the party has expressed regret or shown any remorse for the deaths of numerous individuals."

The advocate declared "It makes it difficult for the party to be accepted by a most citizens in this nation."

The campaigner further stated that the penalty was not closure for the relatives of those who died and were wounded.

"We assist multiple individuals who lost their limbs forever, they are now disabled, due to the crackdown. They cannot pardon her."

An analyst, a journalist and a long-time Bangladesh watcher, said the "inherent character of the guilty verdict could make it increasingly challenging" for Awami League to become a normal feature of the country's governance system again.

This could alter if "a form of contrition emerges and a separation from Sheikh Hasina and the former hierarchy," he expressed.