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Bangladesh's former prime minister has been sentenced to death for atrocities due to her harsh response on youth demonstrations which caused her removal from power.

The court convicted Sheikh Hasina of authorizing deadly measures to be used against demonstrators, 1,400 of whom lost their lives during the unrest during 2024.

Legal proceedings were conducted in absentia by the special international tribunal in Bangladesh, since she went into exile in India following her ouster in July 2024.

Legal authorities charged her of being the mastermind of multiple fatalities during the protests. Hasina has denied every accusation, calling the trial as "prejudiced and driven by politics".

This judgment represents a decisive point for Bangladesh, as the protests unleashed anger over years of repression. Relatives of the deceased and wounded had called for tough penalties.

Responding to the decision in a five-page statement, Hasina said the death penalty was the caretaker administration's way of "eliminating her political faction" as a governing body and that she was satisfied of her administration's performance on civil liberties.

"I am not afraid to meet my challengers in a fair court where the evidence can be weighed and tested fairly."

Bangladesh's main city, Dhaka, where the court convened, was under increased safeguards prior to the decision on Monday, with several of her detractors holding a protest and cheering as the verdict was read.

The capital witnessed a sudden increase in turmoil, with numerous incendiary devices set off and coaches ignited in the period preceding the verdict.

One explosive incident was recorded in Dhaka on Monday morning, with no casualties reported, area law enforcement officer the authorities' representative stated to media outlets.

The student-led uprising during 2024 started with requests to remove state employment quotas but transformed into a broader opposition campaign.

United Nations rights examiners declared in an analysis in February that the nearly 1,400 casualties could constitute "crimes against humanity".

The report documented the shooting at point-blank range of a number of activists, the intentional injuring of additional individuals, arbitrary arrests and abuse.

Leaked audio of one of Hasina's phone calls authenticated by external reviews during the current year implied she had sanctioned the use of "fatal instruments" in July 2024. The audio was played in court during the proceedings.

Ahead of the verdict, kin of those who died in the demonstrations told news agencies they wanted Hasina to be punished severely.

A family representative, whose family member was fatally wounded in July 2024, said he wanted "exemplary punishment" for Hasina and others who have "committed acts of vengeance and misused their authority".

A different family member, whose husband was killed near Dhaka in August 2024, said she wanted her penalty to be "implemented before the election".

"Solely at that point the kin of victims [in the protests] will achieve closure in their hearts."

After her departure, an temporary leadership headed by Nobel laureate Muhammad Yunus has taken charge. A general election is set for February 2026.

However, the Awami League, the former ruling party, was outlawed by Bangladesh's temporary leadership in May.

The former leader cautioned last month that if the her faction's nominees were banned from standing in the imminent electoral process, millions would boycott the ballot.

The verdict now poses a diplomatic challenge for India and Bangladesh. Dhaka has formally requested her return but until now India has expressed no readiness to acquiesce.

Hasina's state-appointed lawyer Mohammad Amir Hossain said he was "disappointed and hoping the decision had been otherwise".

"I even cannot appeal because my defendants are not present; which is why I am sad," he continued.

Recently, the defense attorneys said they had lodged a prompt application to the UN pointing out major judicial fairness and judicial process problems at the ICT.

Legal proceedings involved Hasina together with her previous domestic affairs official and police chief.

While the sentence offers some closure to relatives of the deceased in the protests, it may not significantly ease the country's political divisions.

"The anger against the former leader and the her political party has not subsided," a human rights advocate from the capital informed press agencies. "Both she and the organization has apologised or shown any remorse for the killings of hundreds of people."

She said "It makes it difficult for the faction to gain approval by a most citizens in this state."

The campaigner further stated that the punishment was not closure for the relatives of those who died and were wounded.

"We assist numerous persons who suffered permanent amputations, they are currently without limbs, due to the crackdown. They are incapable of excusing her."

David Bergman, a journalist and a long-time Bangladesh watcher, said the "fundamental aspect of the condemnation could make it even more difficult" for the political faction to become a standard element of Bangladeshi politics again.

This could alter if "there is some kind of apology and a disassociation with Sheikh Hasina and the previous administration," he expressed.