🔗 Share this article

Bangladesh's former prime minister has been handed capital punishment for atrocities over her severe measures on protests led by students which resulted in her removal from power.

The court convicted Sheikh Hasina of allowing lethal force to be used against protesters, with approximately 1,400 individuals died during the turmoil last year.

Legal proceedings were conducted while she was absent by the International Crimes Tribunal (ICT) in Bangladesh, as she resides in exile in India since she was forced from power in July 2024.

The prosecution alleged of being the mastermind of multiple fatalities during the protests. The former leader rejected every accusation, calling the trial as "biased and politically motivated".

The decision signifies a pivotal moment for Bangladesh, as the protests unleashed anger over extended periods of oppression. Families of those killed and harmed had called for severe punishments.

Reacting to the verdict in a five-page statement, the former leader stated the execution sentence was the interim government's way of "eradicating the Awami League" as a governing body and that she was proud of her administration's performance on civil liberties.

"I am not afraid to face my accusers in a proper tribunal where the facts can be assessed and tested fairly."

The nation's capital, Dhaka, where the court convened, was under increased safeguards prior to the decision on Monday, with numerous opponents of Hasina holding a protest and celebrating as the sentence was declared.

Dhaka experienced a recent spike in turmoil, with numerous incendiary devices set off and public transport vehicles burned in the period preceding the verdict.

A minimum of one detonation was reported in Dhaka on Monday morning, with zero injuries documented, area law enforcement officer the police spokesperson stated to news organizations.

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

United Nations rights examiners stated in a document in February that the approximately 1,400 deaths could amount to "crimes against humanity".

The paper detailed the gunfire from minimal distance of some protesters, the intentional injuring of additional individuals, unwarranted detentions and abuse.

Leaked audio of a telephone conversation involving Hasina authenticated by investigative sources during the current year indicated she had authorized the use of "lethal weapons" in July 2024. The recording was presented in court during the trial.

Ahead of the verdict, family members of those killed during the protests stated to news agencies they wanted the former leader to face strict penalties.

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

Another relative, whose husband was killed 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 achieve closure in their hearts."

After her departure, an interim government led by Nobel laureate Muhammad Yunus has taken charge. A national vote is planned for February 2026.

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

The former leader cautioned in the previous month that if the party's candidates were prohibited from running in the upcoming election, countless would abstain the election.

This decision presents a diplomatic challenge for the neighboring countries. The Bangladesh government has asked her return but until now India has demonstrated no inclination to comply.

Her officially designated attorney the defense lawyer said he was "sad [and wishes] the decision had been otherwise".

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

Last week, Hasina's lawyers said they had lodged a prompt application to the UN highlighting significant due process and legal procedure concerns at the ICT.

The former leader faced trial together with her previous domestic affairs official and security forces head.

Even though the verdict grants partial finality to relatives of the deceased in the protests, it may not significantly ease the country's political divisions.

"The anger against Hasina and the her political party has not decreased," a civil liberties campaigner in Dhaka stated to media outlets. "Neither she nor the party has said sorry or demonstrated contrition for the killings of hundreds of people."

She said "This complicates matters for the party to be accepted by a majority of people in this state."

The advocate continued that the penalty was not resolution for the relatives of those fatally and non-fatally harmed.

"We work with numerous persons who underwent irreversible limb loss, they are amputees now, as a result of the harsh measures. They are incapable of excusing her."

David Bergman, an observer of Bangladeshi affairs, said the "inherent character of the guilty verdict could make it even more difficult" for the political faction to become a standard element of the nation's political landscape again.

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