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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 led to her forced departure.

Sheikh Hasina was found guilty of permitting fatal actions to be used against protesters, among whom around 1,400 people lost their lives during the turmoil last year.

Hasina was tried in absentia by the International Crimes Tribunal (ICT) in Bangladesh, having been exiled in India following her ouster in July 2024.

Legal authorities charged her of being the mastermind of multiple fatalities during the protests. She has refuted all charges, calling the trial as "prejudiced and driven by politics".

The decision signifies a critical juncture for Bangladesh, as the protests unleashed anger over extended periods of oppression. Families of those killed and harmed had requested strict sentences.

Answering the judgment in a detailed document, Hasina said the capital punishment was the temporary leadership's way of "eliminating her political faction" as a electoral entity and that she was proud of her administration's performance on civil liberties.

"I am not afraid to face my accusers in a proper tribunal where the evidence can be weighed and examined justly."

The capital, Dhaka, where the legal proceedings occurred, was under enhanced protection prior to the verdict on Monday, with several of her detractors organizing a demonstration and celebrating as the sentence was declared.

The capital witnessed a sudden increase in disturbances, with dozens of bombs exploded and coaches ignited in the days leading up to the verdict.

A minimum of one detonation was noted in Dhaka on Monday morning, with no victims identified, regional security representative the police spokesperson informed press agencies.

The protest movement led by students last year started with requests to remove state employment quotas but evolved into a broader opposition campaign.

UN human rights investigators said in a report in February that the around 1,400 fatalities could amount to "human rights atrocities".

The study recorded the shooting at point-blank range of a number of activists, the purposeful disabling of others, unjustified apprehensions and torture.

Unauthorized recordings of a telephone conversation involving Hasina authenticated by investigative sources in previous months implied she had approved the use of "lethal weapons" in July 2024. The sound file was broadcast in court during the legal process.

Before the decision, family members of those who died in the demonstrations stated to press outlets they wanted strict consequences for Hasina.

A family representative, whose sibling was killed in July 2024, said he wanted "severe penalty" for Hasina and others who have "committed acts of vengeance and misused their authority".

A different family member, whose spouse died 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 achieve closure in their souls."

Following her removal, an temporary leadership led by Nobel laureate Muhammad Yunus has taken charge. A national vote is planned for February 2026.

Nonetheless, the Hasina's political party, the former ruling party, was banned by Bangladesh's interim government in May.

The former leader cautioned in the previous month that if the party's candidates were barred from participating in the imminent electoral process, countless would abstain the ballot.

This decision presents a international dilemma for both nations. Dhaka has formally requested her return but to date India has shown no willingness to comply.

Her officially designated attorney the defense lawyer said he was "unhappy and desiring the outcome had varied".

"I cannot even contest because my clients are absent; which is why I am disappointed," he added.

Recently, the defense attorneys said they had submitted an immediate petition to the UN raising serious fair trial and judicial process problems at the ICT.

Hasina was tried alongside her previous domestic affairs official and security forces head.

Although the punishment grants partial finality to families of killed in the protests, it may not significantly ease the country's political divisions.

"The fury directed at Hasina and the the former ruling faction has not subsided," a civil liberties campaigner in Dhaka told news organizations. "The leader and her faction has said sorry or shown any remorse for the fatalities of countless citizens."

The activist stated "It makes it difficult for the organization to receive endorsement by a bulk of the population in this nation."

The activist added that the sentence was not resolution for the families of those killed and injured.

"We assist numerous persons who underwent irreversible limb loss, they are amputees now, because of the suppression. They cannot pardon her."

An analyst, an observer of Bangladeshi affairs, said the "fundamental aspect of the condemnation could make it increasingly challenging" for the political faction to become a standard element of Bangladeshi politics again.

This could alter if "a form of contrition emerges and a disassociation with Sheikh Hasina and the previous administration," he stated.