🔗 Share this article

The ex-prime minister of Bangladesh has been given a death sentence for human rights violations due to her harsh response on student-led protests which resulted in her ousting.

The court convicted Sheikh Hasina of permitting fatal actions to be used against demonstrators, 1,400 of whom lost their lives during the turmoil last year.

Hasina was tried in absentia by the special international tribunal in Bangladesh, since she went into exile in India following her ouster in July 2024.

The prosecution alleged of being the mastermind of numerous deaths during the protests. She has refuted the entire case, calling the trial as "prejudiced and driven by politics".

This judgment represents a critical juncture for Bangladesh, as the protests revealed fury over extended periods of oppression. Families of those killed and injured had requested severe punishments.

Answering the judgment in a detailed document, Hasina said the capital punishment was the caretaker administration's way of "eliminating her political faction" as a electoral entity and that she was content of her administration's performance on human rights.

"I do not fear to meet my challengers in a fair court where the proof can be evaluated and reviewed impartially."

Bangladesh's main city, Dhaka, where the court convened, was under increased safeguards prior to the decision on Monday, with numerous opponents of Hasina holding a protest and applauding as the sentence was declared.

The capital witnessed a sudden increase in unrest, with numerous incendiary devices set off and buses set on fire in the time before the verdict.

One explosive incident was reported in Dhaka on Monday morning, with no casualties reported, local police official the authorities' representative told press agencies.

The student-led uprising in the previous year began with calls to eliminate public sector reservation policies but morphed 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 gunfire from minimal distance of a number of activists, the purposeful disabling of others, arbitrary arrests and mistreatment.

Disclosed sound files of a call made by the former leader verified by external reviews earlier this year indicated she had sanctioned the use of "lethal weapons" in July 2024. The sound file was broadcast in court during the legal process.

Before the decision, relatives of those killed during the protests stated to media representatives they wanted strict consequences for Hasina.

Ramjan Ali, whose brother was shot dead in July 2024, said he wanted "severe penalty" for the former leader and associates who have "committed acts of vengeance and exploited their positions".

Lucky Akther, whose spouse died near Dhaka in August 2024, said she wanted her penalty to be "implemented before the election".

"Exclusively thereafter the kin of victims [in the protests] will find peace in their souls."

After her departure, an temporary leadership headed by Nobel laureate Muhammad Yunus has assumed control. A parliamentary election is planned for February 2026.

However, the her former political organization, her political faction, was banned by Bangladesh's temporary leadership in May.

Hasina warned last month that if the party's candidates were banned from standing in the forthcoming vote, countless would abstain the vote.

This decision presents a international dilemma for both nations. Authorities have sought her extradition but to date India has demonstrated no inclination to agree.

Her officially designated attorney the defense lawyer said he was "unhappy and desiring the decision had been otherwise".

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

Recently, Hasina's lawyers said they had filed an urgent appeal to the UN highlighting major judicial fairness and due process issues at the ICT.

Hasina was tried alongside her previous domestic affairs official and top law enforcement officer.

Even though the verdict grants partial finality to kin of victims in the protests, it may do little to soothe the nation's partisan rifts.

"The anger against the former leader and the her political party has not diminished," a Dhaka-based rights activist informed news organizations. "The leader and her faction has expressed regret or displayed repentance for the deaths of numerous individuals."

The advocate declared "It makes it difficult for the faction to gain approval by a bulk of the population in this state."

The advocate continued that the penalty was not closure for the families of those who died and were wounded.

"We assist multiple individuals who lost their limbs forever, they are now disabled, as a result of the harsh measures. They will never be able to forgive her."

A journalist, an observer of Bangladeshi affairs, said the "fundamental aspect of the condemnation could make it even more difficult" for her party to become a normal feature of the country's governance system again.

This could alter if "an expression of regret occurs and a distancing from Sheikh Hasina and the old leadership," he stated.