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The country's previous leader has been handed capital punishment for crimes against humanity stemming from her crackdown on protests led by students which caused her removal from power.

Sheikh Hasina was found guilty of authorizing deadly measures to be used against demonstrators, among whom around 1,400 people were killed during the disturbances during 2024.

Legal proceedings were conducted while she was absent by the special international tribunal in Bangladesh, having been exiled in India after being removed from office in July 2024.

Legal authorities charged her of being the mastermind of hundreds of killings during the protests. She has refuted every accusation, describing the process as "biased and politically motivated".

The decision signifies a pivotal moment for Bangladesh, as the protests unleashed anger over extended periods of oppression. Relatives of the deceased and harmed had demanded severe punishments.

Responding to the decision in a detailed document, she expressed the execution sentence was the interim government's way of "eradicating the Awami League" as a political force and that she was proud of her administration's performance on human rights.

"I have no trepidation to face my accusers in a fair court where the proof can be evaluated and tested fairly."

Bangladesh's main city, Dhaka, where the court convened, was under enhanced protection ahead of the ruling on Monday, with several of her detractors holding a protest and cheering as the sentence was declared.

The city has seen a sudden increase in unrest, with dozens of bombs exploded and buses set on fire in the time before the verdict.

One explosive incident was noted in Dhaka on Monday morning, with no casualties reported, regional security representative the authorities' representative stated to news organizations.

The youth-driven revolt in the previous year commenced through requests to remove state employment quotas but evolved into a wider anti-government movement.

International human rights monitors declared in an analysis in February that the nearly 1,400 casualties could represent "crimes against humanity".

The study recorded the shooting at point-blank range of a number of activists, the deliberate maiming of additional individuals, unjustified apprehensions and abuse.

Disclosed sound files of a call made by the former leader verified by media examinations earlier this year implied she had authorized the use of "fatal instruments" in July 2024. The recording was presented in court during the legal process.

Before the decision, family members of those fatally injured in the unrest stated to 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 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 Hasina's sentence to be "implemented before the election".

"Only then the families of those killed [in the protests] will find peace in their hearts."

Following her removal, an caretaker administration headed by economist Muhammad Yunus has taken charge. A general election is set for February 2026.

However, the her former political organization, her political faction, was prohibited by Bangladesh's temporary leadership in May.

Hasina warned last month that if the her faction's nominees were barred from participating in the upcoming election, countless would abstain the ballot.

This decision presents a foreign relations issue for India and Bangladesh. The Bangladesh government has asked her extradition but so far India has demonstrated no inclination to comply.

Her officially designated attorney Mohammad Amir Hossain said he was "disappointed and hoping the verdict had been different".

"I am unable to challenge because my defendants are not present; that's why I am disheartened," he added.

Last week, Hasina's lawyers said they had submitted an immediate petition to the UN raising major judicial fairness and due process issues at the ICT.

Legal proceedings involved Hasina together with her ex-interior minister and top law enforcement officer.

While the sentence offers some closure to kin of victims in the protests, it may have minimal effect on calming the state's ideological splits.

"The resentment towards the former leader and the the former ruling faction has not diminished," a human rights advocate from the capital told press agencies. "Both she and the organization has apologised or demonstrated contrition for the killings of hundreds of people."

The activist stated "It makes it difficult for the party to be accepted by a bulk of the population in this country."

The advocate continued that the penalty was not finality for the families of those killed and injured.

"We assist multiple individuals who suffered permanent amputations, they are amputees now, as a result of the harsh measures. They are incapable of excusing her."

An analyst, a commentator on the nation's politics, said the "inherent character of the guilty verdict could make it even more difficult" for her party to become a normal feature of the nation's political landscape again.

This could alter if "a form of contrition emerges and a separation from the former leader and the former hierarchy," he said.