🔗 Share this article

Bangladesh's former prime minister has been handed capital punishment for human rights violations over her crackdown on youth demonstrations which caused her ousting.

Sheikh Hasina was found guilty of authorizing deadly measures to be used against protesters, among whom around 1,400 people lost their lives during the disturbances during 2024.

The trial proceeded while she was absent by the International Crimes Court in Bangladesh, as she resides in exile in India since she was forced from power in July 2024.

Prosecutors accused her of being responsible for hundreds of killings during the protests. The former leader rejected all charges, labeling the proceedings as "biased and politically motivated".

This judgment represents a critical juncture for Bangladesh, as the protests unleashed anger over long-standing suppression. Relatives of the deceased and injured had called for severe punishments.

Answering the judgment in a comprehensive declaration, she expressed the death penalty was the temporary leadership's way of "eliminating her political faction" as a governing body and that she was content of her government's record on civil liberties.

"I am not afraid to confront those accusing me in a fair court where the proof can be evaluated and examined justly."

Bangladesh's main city, Dhaka, where the court convened, was under tightened security ahead of the verdict on Monday, with numerous opponents of Hasina staging a rally and cheering as the judgment was announced.

The capital witnessed a recent spike in unrest, with numerous incendiary devices set off and public transport vehicles burned in the time before the verdict.

At least one bomb explosion was noted in Dhaka on Monday morning, with zero injuries documented, area law enforcement officer the police spokesperson informed press agencies.

The student-led uprising in the previous year began with requests to remove state employment quotas but morphed into a broader opposition campaign.

International human rights monitors stated in a document in February that the around 1,400 fatalities could constitute "violations of human dignity".

The paper detailed the gunfire from minimal distance of a number of activists, the intentional injuring of others, arbitrary arrests and torture.

Unauthorized recordings of a call made by the former leader authenticated by media examinations earlier this year suggested she had authorized the use of "lethal weapons" in July 2024. The sound file was broadcast in court during the proceedings.

Prior to the ruling, family members of those killed during the protests stated to press outlets they wanted Hasina to be punished severely.

One relative, whose family member was fatally wounded in July 2024, said he wanted "strict sentence" for Hasina and others who have "performed revengeful deeds and exploited their positions".

Lucky Akther, whose husband was killed near Dhaka in August 2024, said she wanted the former leader's punishment to be "implemented before the election".

"Solely at that point the relatives of the deceased [in the protests] will obtain solace in their souls."

Following her removal, an caretaker administration led by economic expert Muhammad Yunus has taken charge. A national vote is scheduled for February 2026.

However, the Hasina's political party, the former ruling party, was banned by Bangladesh's caretaker administration in May.

The former leader cautioned last month that if the the League's representatives were barred from participating in the imminent electoral process, numerous would avoid the ballot.

The verdict now poses a foreign relations issue for India and Bangladesh. Dhaka has formally requested her return but to date India has shown no willingness to comply.

Hasina's state-appointed lawyer the defense lawyer said he was "sad [and wishes] the verdict had been different".

"I am unable to challenge because my defendants are not present; that's why I am sad," he stated further.

The previous week, Hasina's lawyers said they had filed an urgent appeal to the UN raising serious fair trial and judicial process problems at the ICT.

The former leader faced trial together with her former home minister and police chief.

While the sentence provides certain resolution to families of killed in the protests, it may do little to soothe the nation's partisan rifts.

"The anger against the former leader and the the former ruling faction has not decreased," a civil liberties campaigner in Dhaka stated to press agencies. "Both she and the organization has said sorry or displayed repentance for the fatalities of countless citizens."

The activist stated "This creates challenges for the party to be accepted by a most citizens in this state."

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

"We support multiple individuals who underwent irreversible limb loss, they are amputees now, as a result of the harsh measures. They will never be able to forgive her."

David Bergman, an observer of Bangladeshi affairs, said the "inherent character of the guilty verdict could make it particularly hard" for her party to become a standard element of the country's governance system again.

This may change if "there is some kind of apology and a disassociation with Hasina and the former hierarchy," he stated.