🔗 Share this article

The country's previous leader has been sentenced to death for atrocities stemming from her harsh response on youth demonstrations which resulted in her forced departure.

Hasina was declared culpable of permitting fatal actions to be used against demonstrators, 1,400 of whom lost their lives during the turmoil during 2024.

Legal proceedings were conducted while she was absent by the special international tribunal in Bangladesh, having been exiled in India after being removed from office in July 2024.

Legal authorities charged her of being behind numerous deaths during the protests. The former leader rejected the entire case, calling the trial as "prejudiced and driven by politics".

The decision signifies a decisive point for Bangladesh, as the protests unleashed anger over extended periods of oppression. Families of those killed and harmed had demanded severe punishments.

Responding to the decision in a five-page statement, she expressed the capital punishment was the interim government's way of "nullifying [her party] the Awami League" as a governing body 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 facts can be assessed and examined justly."

The nation's capital, Dhaka, where the tribunal took place, was under tightened security prior to the verdict on Monday, with numerous opponents of Hasina organizing a demonstration and celebrating as the verdict was read.

The capital witnessed a notable rise in turmoil, with multiple explosives detonated and coaches ignited in the time before the verdict.

A minimum of one detonation was recorded in Dhaka on Monday morning, with no victims identified, regional security representative the authorities' representative stated to press agencies.

The student-led uprising in the previous year started with requests to remove government job quotas but morphed into a wider anti-government movement.

International human rights monitors stated in a document in February that the approximately 1,400 deaths could represent "violations of human dignity".

The report documented the firing at close quarters of certain demonstrators, the purposeful disabling of others, arbitrary arrests and torture.

Leaked audio of one of Hasina's phone calls confirmed by investigative sources in previous months indicated she had authorized the use of "lethal weapons" in July 2024. The audio was played in court during the trial.

Before the decision, family members of those fatally injured in the unrest told press outlets they wanted the former leader to face strict penalties.

A family representative, whose family member was fatally wounded in July 2024, said he wanted "strict sentence" for Hasina and others who have "performed revengeful deeds and exploited their positions".

Another relative, whose spouse died near Dhaka in August 2024, said she wanted Hasina's sentence to be "carried out before the election".

"Exclusively thereafter the relatives of the deceased [in the protests] will find peace in their hearts."

Since Hasina's ousting, an temporary leadership under the guidance of economist Muhammad Yunus has assumed control. A general election is planned for February 2026.

Nevertheless, the Awami League, Hasina's political party, was outlawed by Bangladesh's interim government in May.

The former leader cautioned during the past month that if the the League's representatives were banned from standing in the forthcoming vote, millions would boycott the ballot.

This decision presents a diplomatic challenge for the neighboring countries. Dhaka has formally requested her return but so far India has shown no willingness to acquiesce.

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

"I even cannot appeal because my represented individuals are away; for that reason I am disappointed," he continued.

Last week, the defense attorneys said they had lodged a prompt application to the UN raising major judicial fairness and judicial process problems at the ICT.

Hasina was tried in conjunction with her previous domestic affairs official and top law enforcement officer.

Even though the verdict grants partial finality to relatives of the deceased in the protests, it may have minimal effect on calming the state's ideological splits.

"The anger against Hasina and the the former ruling faction has not subsided," a Dhaka-based rights activist told news organizations. "The leader and her faction has expressed regret or shown any remorse for the killings of hundreds of people."

The advocate declared "This creates challenges for the faction to gain approval by a most citizens in this nation."

The campaigner further stated that the penalty was not closure for the relatives of those killed and injured.

"We work with numerous persons who suffered permanent amputations, they are amputees now, as a result of the harsh measures. They cannot pardon her."

David Bergman, an observer of Bangladeshi affairs, said the "inherent character of the guilty verdict could make it even more difficult" for Awami League 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.