🔗 Share this article

The country's previous leader has been handed capital punishment for human rights violations stemming from her crackdown on protests led by students which led to her removal from power.

Hasina was declared culpable of authorizing deadly measures to be used against protesters, among whom around 1,400 people lost their lives during the turmoil in the previous year.

Legal proceedings were conducted in absentia by the International Crimes Tribunal (ICT) in Bangladesh, as she resides in exile in India following her ouster in July 2024.

Legal authorities charged her of being behind multiple fatalities during the protests. The former leader rejected the entire case, describing the process as "biased and politically motivated".

The verdict marks a critical juncture for Bangladesh, as the protests unleashed anger over extended periods of oppression. Families of those killed and wounded had called for tough penalties.

Reacting to the verdict in a five-page statement, she expressed the capital punishment was the interim government's way of "eliminating her political faction" as a political force and that she was content of her government's record on civil liberties.

"I have no trepidation to meet my challengers in a just legal forum where the facts can be assessed and examined justly."

The capital, Dhaka, where the tribunal took place, was under increased safeguards before the ruling on Monday, with several of her detractors holding a protest and celebrating as the sentence was declared.

The capital witnessed a recent spike in turmoil, with numerous incendiary devices set off and coaches ignited in the days leading up to the verdict.

At least one bomb explosion was recorded in Dhaka on Monday morning, with zero injuries documented, area law enforcement officer Jisanul Haque informed press agencies.

The youth-driven revolt during 2024 started with calls to eliminate government job quotas but evolved into a more extensive dissent initiative.

United Nations rights examiners said in a report in February that the approximately 1,400 deaths could constitute "human rights atrocities".

The study recorded the shooting at point-blank range of some protesters, the purposeful disabling of further participants, arbitrary arrests and abuse.

Disclosed sound files of a call made by the former leader authenticated by external reviews earlier this year suggested she had authorized the use of "fatal instruments" in July 2024. The recording was presented in court during the proceedings.

Before the decision, relatives of those who died in the demonstrations told media representatives they wanted the former leader to face strict penalties.

A family representative, whose brother was shot dead in July 2024, said he wanted "exemplary punishment" for her and co-accused who have "committed acts of vengeance and exploited their positions".

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

"Solely at that point the families of those killed [in the protests] will find peace in their souls."

After her departure, an caretaker administration headed by economic expert Muhammad Yunus has assumed power. A parliamentary election is scheduled for February 2026.

Nonetheless, the Awami League, the former ruling party, was prohibited by Bangladesh's caretaker administration in May.

Hasina warned 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.

The judgment creates a foreign relations issue for the neighboring countries. Dhaka has formally requested her repatriation but to date India has demonstrated no inclination to comply.

The legal representative assigned to her her legal counsel said he was "unhappy and desiring the verdict had been different".

"I even cannot appeal because my clients are absent; which is why I am sad," he continued.

Last week, her legal team said they had lodged a prompt application to the UN highlighting serious fair trial and legal procedure concerns at the ICT.

Hasina was tried in conjunction with her previous domestic affairs official and police chief.

While the sentence grants partial finality to kin of victims in the protests, it may not significantly ease the nation's partisan rifts.

"The anger against the former leader and the the former ruling faction has not subsided," a civil liberties campaigner in Dhaka told press agencies. "Both she and the organization has apologised or displayed repentance for the killings of hundreds of people."

The activist stated "This creates challenges for the organization to receive endorsement by a majority of people in this state."

The campaigner further stated that the penalty was not finality for the families of those who died and were wounded.

"We work with numerous persons who suffered permanent amputations, they are currently without limbs, because of the suppression. They will never be able to forgive her."

An analyst, a commentator on the nation's politics, said the "inherent character of the guilty verdict could make it even more difficult" for Awami League to become a standard element of the nation's political landscape again.

This could alter if "there is some kind of apology and a disassociation with Hasina and the old leadership," he said.