🔗 Share this article

The country's previous leader has been handed capital punishment for atrocities stemming from her crackdown on student-led protests which led to her forced departure.

The court convicted Sheikh Hasina of authorizing deadly measures to be used against demonstrators, among whom around 1,400 people lost their lives during the turmoil in the previous year.

The trial proceeded in absentia by the International Crimes Court in Bangladesh, as she resides in exile in India following her ouster in July 2024.

The prosecution alleged of being the mastermind of numerous deaths during the protests. The former leader rejected all charges, describing the process as "unfair and agenda-driven".

The decision signifies a decisive point for Bangladesh, as the protests revealed fury over extended periods of oppression. Relatives of the deceased and injured had called for severe punishments.

Responding to the decision in a five-page statement, Hasina said the death penalty was the caretaker administration's way of "eradicating the Awami League" as a electoral entity and that she was content of her government's record on individual freedoms.

"I am not afraid to confront those accusing me in a fair court where the evidence can be weighed and reviewed impartially."

The nation's capital, Dhaka, where the tribunal took place, was under enhanced protection prior to the verdict on Monday, with many of Hasina's critics holding a protest and cheering as the judgment was announced.

Dhaka experienced a recent spike in unrest, with dozens of bombs exploded and buses set on fire in the days leading up to the verdict.

A minimum of one detonation was noted in Dhaka on Monday morning, with no victims identified, area law enforcement officer Jisanul Haque informed news organizations.

The protest movement led by students during 2024 began with demands to abolish state employment quotas but transformed into a broader opposition campaign.

International human rights monitors said in a report in February that the approximately 1,400 deaths could represent "crimes against humanity".

The paper detailed the shooting at point-blank range of some protesters, the intentional injuring of others, arbitrary arrests and mistreatment.

Unauthorized recordings of a telephone conversation involving Hasina verified by investigative sources during the current year suggested she had approved the use of "deadly arms" in July 2024. The recording was presented in court during the legal process.

Before the decision, kin of those killed during the protests informed media representatives they wanted strict consequences for Hasina.

One relative, whose brother was shot dead in July 2024, said he wanted "exemplary punishment" for the former leader and associates who have "engaged in retaliatory actions 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".

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

Following her removal, an caretaker administration headed by economist Muhammad Yunus has taken charge. A national vote is set for February 2026.

Nonetheless, the Awami League, her political faction, was prohibited by Bangladesh's interim government in May.

She alerted in the previous month that if the party's candidates were banned from standing in the imminent electoral process, countless would abstain the election.

The verdict now poses a foreign relations issue for both nations. Authorities have sought her repatriation but to date India has shown no willingness to comply.

The legal representative assigned to her Mohammad Amir Hossain said he was "unhappy and desiring the outcome had varied".

"I even cannot appeal because my defendants are not present; which is why I am disappointed," he added.

Last week, Hasina's lawyers said they had submitted an immediate petition to the UN highlighting major judicial fairness and due process issues at the ICT.

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

Although the punishment provides certain resolution to kin of victims in the protests, it may have minimal effect on calming the state's ideological splits.

"The resentment towards 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 killings of hundreds of people."

The advocate declared "It makes it difficult for the party to be accepted by a majority of people in this country."

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

"We assist numerous persons who suffered permanent amputations, they are amputees now, due to the crackdown. They will never be able to forgive her."

David Bergman, a journalist and a long-time Bangladesh watcher, said the "fundamental aspect of the condemnation could make it even more difficult" for the political faction to become a normal feature of the country's governance system again.

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