🔗 Share this article

Bangladesh's former prime minister has been given a death sentence for atrocities stemming from her harsh response on youth demonstrations which resulted in her ousting.

Hasina was declared culpable of permitting fatal actions to be used against activists, 1,400 of whom lost their lives during the unrest last year.

Legal proceedings were conducted without her presence by the International Crimes Tribunal (ICT) in Bangladesh, as she resides in exile in India after being removed from office in July 2024.

Prosecutors accused her of being responsible for multiple fatalities during the protests. Hasina has denied the entire case, describing the process as "biased and politically motivated".

This judgment represents a pivotal moment for Bangladesh, as the protests revealed fury over extended periods of oppression. Families of those killed and wounded had requested severe punishments.

Responding to the decision in a detailed document, Hasina said the execution sentence was the caretaker administration's way of "eliminating her political faction" as a electoral entity and that she was content of her government's record on individual freedoms.

"I am not afraid to face my accusers in a just legal forum where the evidence can be weighed and tested fairly."

The capital, Dhaka, where the court convened, was under enhanced protection ahead of the decision on Monday, with numerous opponents of Hasina organizing a demonstration and applauding as the verdict was read.

Dhaka experienced a notable rise in disturbances, with multiple explosives detonated and public transport vehicles burned in the days leading up to the verdict.

A minimum of one detonation was recorded in Dhaka on Monday morning, with zero injuries documented, area law enforcement officer Jisanul Haque stated to press agencies.

The youth-driven revolt during 2024 began with demands to abolish public sector reservation policies but evolved into a wider anti-government movement.

United Nations rights examiners said in a report in February that the nearly 1,400 casualties could amount to "human rights atrocities".

The paper detailed the gunfire from minimal distance of a number of activists, the deliberate maiming of others, unjustified apprehensions and torture.

Leaked audio of a telephone conversation involving Hasina verified by external reviews in previous months suggested she had authorized the use of "deadly arms" in July 2024. The audio was played in court during the proceedings.

Prior to the ruling, kin of those fatally injured in the unrest stated to media representatives they wanted strict consequences for Hasina.

Ramjan Ali, whose brother was shot dead in July 2024, said he wanted "exemplary punishment" for the former leader and associates who have "committed acts of vengeance and misused their authority".

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

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

After her departure, an temporary leadership under the guidance of economic expert Muhammad Yunus has assumed control. A parliamentary election is planned for February 2026.

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

She alerted last month that if the the League's representatives were banned from standing in the imminent electoral process, countless would abstain the vote.

The verdict now poses a foreign relations issue for both nations. The Bangladesh government has asked her return but so far India has shown no willingness to agree.

Hasina's state-appointed lawyer the defense lawyer said he was "unhappy and desiring the verdict had been different".

"I am unable to challenge because my clients are absent; that's why I am sad," he continued.

Last week, her legal team said they had filed an urgent appeal to the UN raising major judicial fairness and due process issues at the ICT.

The former leader faced trial in conjunction with her previous domestic affairs official and security forces head.

Even though the verdict offers some closure to families of killed in the protests, it may do little to soothe the country's political divisions.

"The anger against the former leader and the her political party has not diminished," a Dhaka-based rights activist informed media outlets. "Both she and the organization has said sorry or shown any remorse for the killings of hundreds of people."

She said "This complicates matters for the party to be accepted by a bulk of the population in this country."

The activist added that the penalty was not closure for the families of those who died and were wounded.

"We assist numerous persons who underwent irreversible limb loss, they are amputees now, due to the crackdown. They are incapable of excusing her."

An analyst, 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 the country's governance system again.

This might transform if "an expression of regret occurs and a disassociation with Hasina and the former hierarchy," he said.