🔗 Share this article Bangladesh's Ousted Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina Sentenced to Death Penalty The former leader was judged by a special court. The ex-prime minister of Bangladesh has been given a death sentence for atrocities over her severe measures on student-led protests which led to her ousting. The court convicted Sheikh Hasina of authorizing deadly measures to be used against protesters, with approximately 1,400 individuals lost their lives during the turmoil during 2024. Hasina was tried while she was absent by the International Crimes Tribunal (ICT) in Bangladesh, as she resides in exile in India after being removed from office in July 2024. The prosecution alleged of being responsible for hundreds of killings during the protests. Hasina has denied the entire case, describing the process as "prejudiced and driven by politics". Protesters battled the law enforcement during the demonstrations in 2024 in Dhaka. This judgment represents a decisive point for Bangladesh, as the protests revealed fury over long-standing suppression. Relatives of the deceased and injured had demanded severe punishments. Reacting to the verdict in a detailed document, she expressed the death penalty was the caretaker administration's way of "eliminating her political faction" as a governing body and that she was content of her administration's performance on civil liberties. "I have no trepidation to face my accusers in a just legal forum where the facts can be assessed and examined justly." Bangladesh's main city, Dhaka, where the court convened, was under tightened security prior to the ruling on Monday, with many of Hasina's critics organizing a demonstration and celebrating as the judgment was announced. The capital witnessed a notable rise in unrest, with numerous incendiary devices set off and public transport vehicles burned in the days leading up to the verdict. A minimum of one detonation was reported in Dhaka on Monday morning, with zero injuries documented, local police official the authorities' representative informed news organizations. The youth-driven revolt during 2024 commenced through calls to eliminate public sector reservation policies but transformed into a wider anti-government movement. United Nations rights examiners declared in an analysis in February that the around 1,400 fatalities could constitute "crimes against humanity". The paper detailed the gunfire from minimal distance of certain demonstrators, the intentional injuring of further participants, arbitrary arrests and abuse. Unauthorized recordings of a telephone conversation involving Hasina confirmed by media examinations earlier this year implied she had sanctioned the use of "fatal instruments" in July 2024. The recording was presented in court during the proceedings. Ahead of the verdict, kin of those who died in the demonstrations stated to news agencies they wanted the former leader to face strict penalties. One relative, whose family member was fatally wounded in July 2024, said he wanted "strict sentence" 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 Hasina's sentence to be "carried out before the election". "Solely at that point the kin of victims [in the protests] will find peace 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. Nevertheless, the her former political organization, her political faction, was outlawed by Bangladesh's caretaker administration in May. She alerted during the past month that if the party's candidates were barred from participating in the imminent electoral process, millions would boycott the ballot. The verdict now poses a diplomatic challenge for both nations. The Bangladesh government has asked her repatriation but to date India has expressed no readiness to comply. Her officially designated attorney her legal counsel said he was "unhappy and desiring the decision had been otherwise". "I cannot even contest because my represented individuals are away; for that reason I am disappointed," he added. Recently, the defense attorneys said they had filed an urgent appeal to the UN raising significant due process and legal procedure concerns at the ICT. Opposition activists entered forcibly her official home in Dhaka in last year. Hasina was tried in conjunction with her former home minister and top law enforcement officer. While the sentence grants partial finality to relatives of the deceased in the protests, it may have minimal effect on calming the country's political divisions. "The anger against Sheikh Hasina and the the former ruling faction has not diminished," a civil liberties campaigner in Dhaka stated to media outlets. "Neither she nor the party has said sorry or displayed repentance for the deaths of numerous individuals." The advocate declared "This creates challenges for the party to be accepted by a majority of people in this state." The campaigner further stated that the penalty was not finality for the relatives of those fatally and non-fatally harmed. "We work with numerous persons who suffered permanent amputations, they are currently without limbs, due to the crackdown. They are incapable of excusing her." David Bergman, a journalist and a long-time Bangladesh watcher, said the "inherent character of the guilty verdict could make it particularly hard" for Awami League to become a normal feature of Bangladeshi politics again. This could alter if "an expression of regret occurs and a distancing from Hasina and the old leadership," he expressed.