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The country's previous leader has been sentenced to death for crimes against humanity over her harsh response on youth demonstrations which led to her removal from power.

The court convicted Sheikh Hasina of permitting fatal actions to be used against demonstrators, among whom around 1,400 people lost their lives during the disturbances last year.

Hasina was tried while she was absent by the International Crimes Tribunal (ICT) in Bangladesh, since she went into exile in India since she was forced from power in July 2024.

Prosecutors accused her of being responsible for numerous deaths during the protests. Hasina has denied the entire case, describing the process as "prejudiced and driven by politics".

The verdict marks a pivotal moment for Bangladesh, as the protests brought forth resentment over years of repression. Next of kin of victims and injured had called for severe punishments.

Responding to the decision in a detailed document, Hasina said the death penalty was the interim government's way of "eradicating the Awami League" as a political force and that she was satisfied of her administration's performance on civil liberties.

"I do not fear to confront those accusing me in a just legal forum where the proof can be evaluated and tested fairly."

The 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 cheering as the sentence was declared.

The capital witnessed a sudden increase in unrest, with dozens of bombs exploded and public transport vehicles burned in the time before the verdict.

A minimum of one detonation was reported in Dhaka on Monday morning, with no victims identified, local police official Jisanul Haque informed news organizations.

The protest movement led by students during 2024 started with demands to abolish public sector reservation policies but morphed into a broader opposition campaign.

United Nations rights examiners stated in a document in February that the around 1,400 fatalities could constitute "violations of human dignity".

The report documented the gunfire from minimal distance of some protesters, the deliberate maiming of further participants, unwarranted detentions and torture.

Unauthorized recordings of a call made by the former leader confirmed by media examinations earlier this year implied she had approved the use of "fatal instruments" in July 2024. The recording was presented in court during the trial.

Prior to the ruling, relatives of those killed during the protests stated to media representatives they wanted Hasina to be punished severely.

One relative, whose sibling was killed in July 2024, said he wanted "severe penalty" for her and co-accused who have "committed acts of vengeance and abused their power".

A different family member, whose husband was killed near Dhaka in August 2024, said she wanted her penalty to be "implemented before the election".

"Exclusively thereafter the kin of victims [in the protests] will find peace in their minds."

After her departure, an interim government headed by Nobel laureate Muhammad Yunus has assumed power. A general election is set for February 2026.

Nevertheless, the Awami League, Hasina's political party, was banned by Bangladesh's interim government in May.

Hasina warned during the past month that if the the League's representatives were banned from standing in the upcoming election, countless would abstain the election.

This decision presents a foreign relations issue for India and Bangladesh. The Bangladesh government has asked her repatriation but so far India has expressed no readiness to acquiesce.

Her officially designated attorney the defense lawyer said he was "sad [and wishes] the verdict had been different".

"I am unable to challenge because my defendants are not present; for that reason I am sad," he stated further.

Last week, her legal team said they had submitted an immediate petition to the UN pointing out major judicial fairness and legal procedure concerns at the ICT.

Hasina was tried alongside her former home minister and top law enforcement officer.

Even though the verdict offers some closure to families of killed in the protests, it may not significantly ease the nation's partisan rifts.

"The fury directed at the former leader and the her political party has not subsided," a human rights advocate from the capital told media outlets. "The leader and her faction has expressed regret or displayed repentance for the killings of hundreds of people."

She said "This complicates matters for the party to be accepted by a most citizens in this country."

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

"We support numerous persons who lost their limbs forever, they are now disabled, as a result of the harsh measures. They are incapable of excusing her."

An analyst, a journalist and a long-time Bangladesh watcher, said the "fundamental aspect of the condemnation could make it particularly hard" for her party to become a normal feature of Bangladeshi politics again.

This might transform if "a form of contrition emerges and a distancing from Hasina and the previous administration," he expressed.