🔗 Share this article

The ex-prime minister of Bangladesh has been given a death sentence for crimes against humanity due to her severe measures on protests led by students which caused her forced departure.

Sheikh Hasina was found guilty of authorizing deadly measures to be used against protesters, 1,400 of whom were killed during the turmoil last year.

The trial proceeded without her presence by the special international tribunal in Bangladesh, as she resides in exile in India since she was forced from power in July 2024.

The prosecution alleged of being responsible for numerous deaths during the protests. Hasina has denied all charges, calling the trial as "unfair and agenda-driven".

This judgment represents a pivotal moment for Bangladesh, as the protests revealed fury over long-standing suppression. Families of those killed and injured had demanded strict sentences.

Answering the judgment in a comprehensive declaration, Hasina said the execution sentence was the interim government's way of "eradicating the Awami League" as a political force and that she was proud of her administration's performance on civil liberties.

"I have no trepidation to confront those accusing me in a proper tribunal where the proof can be evaluated and tested fairly."

The nation's capital, Dhaka, where the legal proceedings occurred, was under enhanced protection ahead of the ruling on Monday, with numerous opponents of Hasina staging a rally and celebrating as the judgment was announced.

The capital witnessed a sudden increase in turmoil, with dozens of bombs exploded and coaches ignited in the time before the verdict.

At least one bomb explosion was recorded in Dhaka on Monday morning, with no casualties reported, area law enforcement officer the police spokesperson informed media outlets.

The student-led uprising during 2024 started with demands to abolish state employment quotas but evolved into a more extensive dissent initiative.

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

The paper detailed the firing at close quarters of a number of activists, the deliberate maiming of others, unjustified apprehensions and torture.

Unauthorized recordings of a telephone conversation involving Hasina confirmed by external reviews during the current year indicated she had sanctioned the use of "lethal weapons" in July 2024. The recording was presented in court during the trial.

Prior to the ruling, kin of those killed during the protests stated to news agencies they wanted Hasina to be punished severely.

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 her penalty to be "carried out before the election".

"Exclusively thereafter the relatives of the deceased [in the protests] will obtain solace in their hearts."

After her departure, an caretaker administration led by economic expert Muhammad Yunus has assumed control. A parliamentary election is set for February 2026.

Nonetheless, the Hasina's political party, her political faction, was banned by Bangladesh's caretaker administration in May.

The former leader cautioned last month that if the the League's representatives were prohibited from running in the forthcoming vote, countless would abstain the ballot.

The judgment creates a foreign relations issue for the neighboring countries. Authorities have sought her repatriation but to date India has shown no willingness to agree.

Her officially designated attorney her legal counsel said he was "disappointed and hoping the verdict had been different".

"I cannot even contest because my defendants are not present; for that reason I am disappointed," he continued.

Recently, her legal team said they had submitted an immediate petition to the UN highlighting major judicial fairness and judicial process problems at the ICT.

Hasina was tried in conjunction with her former home minister and top law enforcement officer.

Although the punishment grants partial finality to families of killed in the protests, it may not significantly ease the nation's partisan rifts.

"The fury directed at Sheikh Hasina and the the former ruling faction has not diminished," a Dhaka-based rights activist stated to press agencies. "The leader and her faction has said sorry or displayed repentance for the killings of hundreds of people."

The activist stated "It makes it difficult for the organization to receive endorsement by a bulk of the population in this nation."

The activist added that the sentence was not closure for the relatives of those fatally and non-fatally harmed.

"We support multiple individuals who lost their limbs forever, they are amputees now, because of the suppression. They are incapable of excusing her."

David Bergman, a commentator on the nation's politics, said the "fundamental aspect of the condemnation could make it increasingly challenging" for her party to become a regular participant of the nation's political landscape again.

This may change if "an expression of regret occurs and a disassociation with Hasina and the former hierarchy," he stated.