🔗 Share this article

Bangladesh's former prime minister has been sentenced to death for atrocities over her harsh response on protests led by students which led to her forced departure.

Sheikh Hasina was found guilty of authorizing deadly measures to be used against activists, among whom around 1,400 people died during the turmoil in the previous year.

Legal proceedings were conducted while she was absent by the special international tribunal in Bangladesh, since she went into exile in India since she was forced from power in July 2024.

Prosecutors accused her of being behind numerous deaths during the protests. Hasina has denied the entire case, calling the trial as "unfair and agenda-driven".

The decision signifies a critical juncture for Bangladesh, as the protests brought forth resentment over extended periods of oppression. Relatives of the deceased and wounded had called for strict sentences.

Responding to the decision in a comprehensive declaration, Hasina said the capital punishment was the caretaker administration's way of "nullifying [her party] the Awami League" as a governing body and that she was proud of her administration's performance on individual freedoms.

"I am not afraid to confront those accusing me in a just legal forum where the proof can be evaluated and tested fairly."

Bangladesh's main city, Dhaka, where the tribunal took place, was under tightened security before the ruling on Monday, with many of Hasina's critics holding a protest and cheering as the sentence was declared.

The city has seen a recent spike in unrest, with multiple explosives detonated and public transport vehicles burned in the period preceding the verdict.

At least one bomb explosion was noted in Dhaka on Monday morning, with no casualties reported, area law enforcement officer Jisanul Haque stated to press agencies.

The student-led uprising last year commenced through requests to remove state employment quotas but evolved into a more extensive dissent initiative.

United Nations rights examiners stated in a document in February that the nearly 1,400 casualties could represent "human rights atrocities".

The report documented the firing at close quarters of a number of activists, the deliberate maiming of others, unwarranted detentions and torture.

Leaked audio of a telephone conversation involving Hasina authenticated by investigative sources during the current year implied she had sanctioned the use of "lethal weapons" in July 2024. The sound file was broadcast in court during the proceedings.

Prior to the ruling, family members of those who died in the demonstrations told media representatives they wanted strict consequences for Hasina.

One relative, whose sibling was killed in July 2024, said he wanted "severe penalty" for the former leader and associates who have "performed revengeful deeds 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".

"Exclusively thereafter the families of those killed [in the protests] will find peace in their souls."

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.

However, the her former political organization, her political faction, was banned by Bangladesh's interim government in May.

The former leader cautioned during the past month that if the the League's representatives were prohibited from running in the imminent electoral process, countless would abstain the election.

This decision presents a foreign relations issue for India and Bangladesh. Authorities have sought her extradition but to date India has demonstrated no inclination to acquiesce.

Hasina's state-appointed lawyer her legal counsel said he was "sad [and wishes] the decision had been otherwise".

"I cannot even contest because my clients are absent; that's why I am disheartened," he stated further.

The previous week, the defense attorneys said they had filed an urgent appeal to the UN pointing out significant due process and due process issues at the ICT.

The former leader faced trial together with her previous domestic affairs official and police chief.

Although the punishment provides certain resolution to kin of victims in the protests, it may have minimal effect on calming the nation's partisan rifts.

"The resentment towards the former leader and the the former ruling faction has not decreased," a Dhaka-based rights activist told media outlets. "Both she and the organization has expressed regret or demonstrated contrition 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 state."

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

"We assist multiple individuals who lost their limbs forever, they are currently without limbs, as a result of the harsh measures. They will never be able to forgive her."

A journalist, a commentator on the nation's politics, said the "very nature of the conviction could make it increasingly challenging" for the political faction to become a standard element of the country's governance system again.

This might transform if "a form of contrition emerges and a distancing from the former leader and the old leadership," he said.