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Bangladesh's former prime minister has been given a death sentence for atrocities stemming from her crackdown on student-led protests which caused her ousting.

Sheikh Hasina was found guilty of allowing lethal force to be used against activists, among whom around 1,400 people lost their lives during the turmoil last year.

Hasina was tried without her presence by the special international tribunal in Bangladesh, having been exiled in India since she was forced from power in July 2024.

Prosecutors accused her of being the mastermind of numerous deaths during the protests. She has refuted the entire case, calling the trial as "prejudiced and driven by politics".

The verdict marks a decisive point for Bangladesh, as the protests revealed fury over long-standing suppression. Families of those killed and injured had demanded strict sentences.

Reacting to the verdict in a five-page statement, Hasina said the capital punishment was the interim government'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 have no trepidation to confront those accusing me in a just legal forum where the evidence can be weighed and reviewed impartially."

Bangladesh's main city, 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 cheering as the verdict was read.

The capital witnessed a sudden increase in disturbances, with numerous incendiary devices set off and public transport vehicles burned in the period preceding the verdict.

One explosive incident was noted in Dhaka on Monday morning, with no victims identified, area law enforcement officer the police spokesperson informed news organizations.

The student-led uprising during 2024 commenced through calls to eliminate state employment quotas but evolved into a more extensive dissent initiative.

UN human rights investigators said in a report in February that the approximately 1,400 deaths could amount to "violations of human dignity".

The paper detailed the firing at close quarters of some protesters, the deliberate maiming of additional individuals, unjustified apprehensions and torture.

Disclosed sound files of a call made by the former leader verified by investigative sources earlier this year indicated she had sanctioned the use of "deadly arms" in July 2024. The audio was played in court during the proceedings.

Prior to the ruling, relatives of those who died in the demonstrations informed media representatives 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 "engaged in retaliatory actions and misused their authority".

A different family member, whose husband was killed near Dhaka in August 2024, said she wanted Hasina's sentence to be "executed before the election".

"Exclusively thereafter the kin of victims [in the protests] will achieve closure in their minds."

Since Hasina's ousting, an interim government led by economic expert Muhammad Yunus has taken charge. A parliamentary election is set for February 2026.

Nonetheless, the Awami League, her political faction, was prohibited by Bangladesh's caretaker administration in May.

Hasina warned last month that if the party's candidates were barred from participating in the forthcoming vote, numerous would avoid the vote.

The verdict now poses a foreign relations issue for the neighboring countries. Authorities have sought her extradition but to date 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 even cannot appeal because my represented individuals are away; for that reason I am sad," he added.

The previous 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.

The former leader faced trial in conjunction with her former home minister and security forces head.

Although the punishment provides certain resolution to families of killed in the protests, it may have minimal effect on calming the country's political divisions.

"The fury directed at the former leader and the Awami League has not decreased," a civil liberties campaigner in Dhaka stated to news organizations. "The leader and her faction has apologised or demonstrated contrition for the killings of hundreds of people."

The advocate declared "This complicates matters for the faction to gain approval by a majority of people in this nation."

The campaigner further stated that the punishment was not resolution for the relatives of those fatally and non-fatally harmed.

"We support numerous persons who suffered permanent amputations, they are amputees now, as a result of the harsh measures. They are incapable of excusing her."

A journalist, a journalist and a long-time Bangladesh watcher, said the "inherent character of the guilty verdict could make it even more difficult" for the political faction to become a standard element of Bangladeshi politics again.

This may change if "a form of contrition emerges and a separation from the former leader and the former hierarchy," he stated.