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The ex-prime minister of Bangladesh has been given a death sentence for human rights violations stemming from her severe measures on student-led protests which caused her ousting.

Sheikh Hasina was found guilty of authorizing deadly measures to be used against activists, 1,400 of whom died during the turmoil during 2024.

Hasina was tried without her presence by the International Crimes Tribunal (ICT) in Bangladesh, as she resides in exile in India following her ouster in July 2024.

Legal authorities charged her of being the mastermind of numerous deaths during the protests. Hasina has denied the entire case, calling the trial as "unfair and agenda-driven".

The verdict marks a pivotal moment for Bangladesh, as the protests brought forth resentment over extended periods of oppression. Relatives of the deceased and wounded had requested strict sentences.

Reacting to the verdict in a five-page statement, she expressed the execution sentence was the interim government's way of "eliminating her political faction" as a political force and that she was content of her leadership's history on individual freedoms.

"I am not afraid to confront those accusing me in a just legal forum where the evidence can be weighed and examined justly."

Bangladesh's main city, Dhaka, where the legal proceedings occurred, was under enhanced protection ahead of the verdict on Monday, with several of her detractors staging a rally and applauding as the judgment was announced.

The city has seen a recent spike in disturbances, with dozens of bombs exploded and coaches ignited in the period preceding the verdict.

One explosive incident was recorded in Dhaka on Monday morning, with zero injuries documented, local police official the authorities' representative told news organizations.

The student-led uprising in the previous year started with requests to remove public sector reservation policies but transformed into a more extensive dissent initiative.

International human rights monitors said in a report in February that the approximately 1,400 deaths could represent "human rights atrocities".

The paper detailed the shooting at point-blank range of certain demonstrators, the intentional injuring of further participants, arbitrary arrests and mistreatment.

Leaked audio of a call made by the former leader authenticated by external reviews earlier this year indicated she had approved the use of "fatal instruments" in July 2024. The sound file was broadcast in court during the trial.

Before the decision, relatives of those killed during the protests told news agencies they wanted strict consequences for Hasina.

One relative, whose brother was shot dead in July 2024, said he wanted "strict sentence" for Hasina and others who have "committed acts of vengeance and exploited their positions".

Another relative, whose husband was killed near Dhaka in August 2024, said she wanted Hasina's sentence to be "implemented before the election".

"Only then the relatives of the deceased [in the protests] will obtain solace in their souls."

Following her removal, an temporary leadership headed by economic expert Muhammad Yunus has assumed control. A general election is set for February 2026.

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

The former leader cautioned last month that if the her faction's nominees were prohibited from running in the upcoming election, countless would abstain the vote.

The verdict now poses a foreign relations issue for India and Bangladesh. The Bangladesh government has asked her return but so far India has expressed no readiness to agree.

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

"I even cannot appeal because my clients are absent; which is why I am disheartened," he stated further.

Recently, Hasina's lawyers said they had filed an urgent appeal to the UN highlighting major judicial fairness and judicial process problems at the ICT.

Hasina was tried together with her ex-interior minister and security forces head.

Although the punishment grants partial finality to relatives of the deceased in the protests, it may do little to soothe the state's ideological splits.

"The fury directed at Hasina and the Awami League has not decreased," a Dhaka-based rights activist told press agencies. "Neither she nor the party has expressed regret or shown any remorse for the fatalities of countless citizens."

She said "It makes it difficult for the party to be accepted by a majority of people in this state."

The campaigner further stated that the punishment was not finality for the families of those killed and injured.

"We assist several people who lost their limbs forever, they are currently without limbs, due to the crackdown. They will never be able to forgive her."

An analyst, a journalist and a long-time Bangladesh watcher, said the "very nature of the conviction could make it particularly hard" for her party to become a normal feature of Bangladeshi politics again.

This might transform if "a form of contrition emerges and a separation from Sheikh Hasina and the previous administration," he expressed.