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Bangladesh's former prime minister has been sentenced to death for crimes against humanity over her severe measures on youth demonstrations which caused her forced departure.

The court convicted Sheikh Hasina of authorizing deadly measures to be used against activists, among whom around 1,400 people lost their lives during the disturbances during 2024.

Legal proceedings were conducted without her presence by the International Crimes Court in Bangladesh, since she went into exile in India after being removed from office in July 2024.

Prosecutors accused her of being behind numerous deaths during the protests. Hasina has denied all charges, calling the trial as "prejudiced and driven by politics".

This judgment represents a pivotal moment for Bangladesh, as the protests revealed fury over extended periods of oppression. Families of those killed and injured had demanded tough penalties.

Responding to the decision in a five-page statement, she expressed the capital punishment was the caretaker administration's way of "eliminating her political faction" as a governing body and that she was satisfied of her administration's performance on civil liberties.

"I have no trepidation to meet my challengers in a fair court where the evidence can be weighed and tested fairly."

Bangladesh's main city, Dhaka, where the court convened, was under enhanced protection before the verdict on Monday, with several of her detractors holding a protest and celebrating as the verdict was read.

The capital witnessed a recent spike in disturbances, with numerous incendiary devices set off and coaches ignited in the period preceding the verdict.

A minimum of one detonation was noted in Dhaka on Monday morning, with no casualties reported, local police official the authorities' representative informed press agencies.

The protest movement led by students during 2024 commenced through requests to remove government job quotas but morphed into a wider anti-government movement.

United Nations rights examiners declared in an analysis in February that the around 1,400 fatalities could represent "crimes against humanity".

The study recorded the firing at close quarters of a number of activists, the purposeful disabling of further participants, unjustified apprehensions and abuse.

Disclosed sound files of one of Hasina's phone calls confirmed by external reviews earlier this year indicated she had authorized the use of "deadly arms" in July 2024. The recording was presented in court during the trial.

Ahead of the verdict, family members of those fatally injured in the unrest informed press outlets they wanted Hasina to be punished severely.

One relative, whose family member was fatally wounded in July 2024, said he wanted "severe penalty" for Hasina and others who have "engaged in retaliatory actions and abused their power".

Another relative, whose husband was killed 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 relatives of the deceased [in the protests] will achieve closure in their minds."

Following her removal, an caretaker administration led by Nobel laureate Muhammad Yunus has assumed control. A national vote is planned for February 2026.

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

Hasina warned during the past month that if the party's candidates were prohibited from running in the imminent electoral process, millions would boycott the ballot.

The judgment creates a foreign relations issue for both nations. Dhaka has formally requested her extradition but so far India has expressed no readiness to agree.

Hasina's state-appointed lawyer the defense lawyer said he was "unhappy and desiring the outcome had varied".

"I even cannot appeal because my represented individuals are away; which is why I am disappointed," he stated further.

Recently, her legal team said they had submitted an immediate petition to the UN pointing out significant due process and due process issues at the ICT.

The former leader faced trial together with her previous domestic affairs official and top law enforcement officer.

Even though the verdict provides certain resolution to kin of victims in the protests, it may do little to soothe the nation's partisan rifts.

"The anger against Sheikh Hasina and the Awami League has not diminished," a Dhaka-based rights activist told media outlets. "Neither she nor the party has expressed regret or displayed repentance for the fatalities of countless citizens."

The activist stated "This complicates matters for the faction to gain approval by a bulk of the population in this country."

The advocate continued that the penalty was not resolution for the kin of those fatally and non-fatally harmed.

"We support several people who suffered permanent amputations, they are currently without limbs, 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 particularly hard" for her party to become a standard element of Bangladeshi politics again.

This may change if "a form of contrition emerges and a distancing from the former leader and the old leadership," he said.