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Bangladesh's former prime minister has been sentenced to death for atrocities over her severe measures on student-led protests which led to her removal from power.

Sheikh Hasina was found guilty of permitting fatal actions to be used against protesters, among whom around 1,400 people were killed during the unrest last year.

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

The prosecution alleged of being the mastermind of numerous deaths during the protests. The former leader rejected all charges, calling the trial as "biased and politically motivated".

The decision signifies a decisive point for Bangladesh, as the protests revealed fury over long-standing suppression. Next of kin of victims and wounded had requested tough penalties.

Responding to the decision in a five-page statement, she expressed the capital punishment was the caretaker administration's way of "eradicating the Awami League" as a political force and that she was proud of her administration's performance on civil liberties.

"I have no trepidation to face my accusers in a fair court where the evidence can be weighed and reviewed impartially."

The capital, Dhaka, where the legal proceedings occurred, was under increased safeguards ahead of the ruling on Monday, with several of her detractors staging a rally and celebrating as the sentence was declared.

The city has seen a recent spike in disturbances, with numerous incendiary devices set off and coaches ignited in the time before the verdict.

One explosive incident was noted in Dhaka on Monday morning, with zero injuries documented, area law enforcement officer the authorities' representative informed media outlets.

The youth-driven revolt last year started with requests to remove state employment 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 amount to "crimes against humanity".

The study recorded the shooting at point-blank range of certain demonstrators, the deliberate maiming of additional individuals, arbitrary arrests and abuse.

Leaked audio of a telephone conversation involving Hasina confirmed by external reviews earlier this year implied she had approved the use of "deadly arms" in July 2024. The sound file was broadcast in court during the legal process.

Ahead of the verdict, relatives of those fatally injured in the unrest stated to press outlets they wanted strict consequences for Hasina.

Ramjan Ali, whose family member was fatally wounded in July 2024, said he wanted "strict sentence" for the former leader and associates who have "committed acts of vengeance and abused their power".

A different family member, whose partner was fatally injured near Dhaka in August 2024, said she wanted the former leader's punishment to be "implemented before the election".

"Solely at that point the relatives of the deceased [in the protests] will obtain solace in their hearts."

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

However, the Hasina's political party, the former ruling party, was prohibited by Bangladesh's temporary leadership in May.

She alerted during the past month that if the the League's representatives were prohibited from running in the imminent electoral process, countless would abstain the vote.

This decision presents a international dilemma for India and Bangladesh. Dhaka has formally requested her return but until now India has demonstrated no inclination to agree.

Hasina's state-appointed lawyer her legal counsel said he was "unhappy and desiring 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.

Recently, Hasina's lawyers said they had lodged a prompt application to the UN pointing out significant due process and judicial process problems at the ICT.

Hasina was tried in conjunction with her former home minister and top law enforcement officer.

While the sentence grants partial finality to kin of victims in the protests, it may do little to soothe the state's ideological splits.

"The fury directed at the former leader and the her political party has not diminished," a civil liberties campaigner in Dhaka told media outlets. "The leader and her faction has said sorry or displayed repentance for the killings of hundreds of people."

The activist stated "This creates challenges for the organization to receive endorsement by a most citizens in this nation."

The activist added that the sentence was not finality for the relatives of those who died and were wounded.

"We work with multiple individuals who suffered permanent amputations, they are amputees now, because of the suppression. They will never be able to forgive her."

David Bergman, a journalist and a long-time Bangladesh watcher, said the "inherent character of the guilty verdict could make it increasingly challenging" for the political faction to become a regular participant of Bangladeshi politics again.

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