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Bangladesh's former prime minister has been handed capital punishment for crimes against humanity over her severe measures on student-led protests which led to her forced departure.

Sheikh Hasina was found guilty of permitting fatal actions to be used against demonstrators, among whom around 1,400 people died during the turmoil in the previous year.

The trial proceeded while she was absent by the International Crimes Tribunal (ICT) in Bangladesh, as she resides in exile in India since she was forced from power in July 2024.

Prosecutors accused her of being responsible for hundreds of killings during the protests. Hasina has denied all charges, calling the trial as "unfair and agenda-driven".

The decision signifies a decisive point for Bangladesh, as the protests revealed fury over extended periods of oppression. Families of those killed and injured had requested severe punishments.

Answering the judgment in a detailed document, Hasina said the capital punishment was the interim government's way of "eradicating the Awami League" as a electoral entity and that she was proud of her government's record on individual freedoms.

"I have no trepidation to meet my challengers in a just legal forum where the proof can be evaluated and tested fairly."

Bangladesh's main city, Dhaka, where the court convened, was under tightened security before the verdict on Monday, with many of Hasina's critics holding a protest and cheering as the judgment was announced.

Dhaka experienced a sudden increase in unrest, with multiple explosives detonated and coaches ignited in the time before the verdict.

At least one bomb explosion was recorded in Dhaka on Monday morning, with no victims identified, regional security representative Jisanul Haque told news organizations.

The protest movement led by students during 2024 started with requests to remove state employment quotas but evolved into a broader opposition campaign.

UN human rights investigators declared in an analysis in February that the approximately 1,400 deaths could represent "human rights atrocities".

The report documented the shooting at point-blank range of some protesters, the purposeful disabling of further participants, unjustified apprehensions and torture.

Leaked audio of one of Hasina's phone calls authenticated by external reviews during the current year implied she had authorized the use of "lethal weapons" in July 2024. The audio was played in court during the trial.

Ahead of the verdict, relatives of those fatally injured in the unrest told news agencies they wanted the former leader to face strict penalties.

Ramjan Ali, whose family member was fatally wounded in July 2024, said he wanted "exemplary punishment" for her and co-accused who have "committed acts of vengeance and exploited their positions".

Another relative, whose spouse died 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 obtain solace in their hearts."

Since Hasina's ousting, an caretaker administration led by Nobel laureate Muhammad Yunus has taken charge. A general election is set for February 2026.

Nonetheless, the Hasina's political party, her political faction, was outlawed by Bangladesh's interim government in May.

She alerted in the previous month that if the party's candidates were prohibited from running in the upcoming election, numerous would avoid the vote.

This decision presents a international dilemma for India and Bangladesh. Authorities have sought her extradition but until now India has expressed no readiness to agree.

Hasina's state-appointed lawyer her legal counsel said he was "disappointed and hoping the decision had been otherwise".

"I cannot even contest because my defendants are not present; that's why I am disappointed," he continued.

Recently, her legal team said they had filed an urgent appeal to the UN raising major judicial fairness and judicial process problems at the ICT.

Legal proceedings involved Hasina together with her ex-interior minister and police chief.

Even though the verdict provides certain resolution to families of killed in the protests, it may have minimal effect on calming the nation's partisan rifts.

"The fury directed at the former leader and the Awami League has not decreased," a human rights advocate from the capital stated to media outlets. "Both she and the organization has apologised or displayed repentance for the fatalities of countless citizens."

She said "It makes it difficult for the faction to gain approval by a majority of people in this nation."

The advocate continued that the punishment was not resolution for the kin of those who died and were wounded.

"We support multiple individuals who suffered permanent amputations, they are currently without limbs, because of the suppression. They are incapable of excusing her."

A journalist, a journalist and a long-time Bangladesh watcher, said the "very nature of the conviction could make it even more difficult" for Awami League to become a standard element of the nation's political landscape again.

This may change if "there is some kind of apology and a separation from the former leader and the old leadership," he said.