🔗 Share this article

The country's previous leader has been handed capital punishment for crimes against humanity stemming from her crackdown on youth demonstrations which resulted in her removal from power.

Sheikh Hasina was found guilty of permitting fatal actions to be used against activists, with approximately 1,400 individuals were killed during the turmoil in the previous year.

Hasina was tried while she was absent by the International Crimes Tribunal (ICT) in Bangladesh, since she went into exile in India following her ouster in July 2024.

Legal authorities charged her of being responsible for hundreds of killings during the protests. The former leader rejected the entire case, calling the trial as "biased and politically motivated".

The verdict marks a critical juncture for Bangladesh, as the protests brought forth resentment over extended periods of oppression. Families of those killed and harmed had demanded tough penalties.

Responding to the decision in a detailed document, she expressed the death penalty was the interim government's way of "nullifying [her party] the Awami League" as a governing body and that she was content of her leadership's history on human rights.

"I have no trepidation to confront those accusing me in a proper tribunal where the proof can be evaluated and tested fairly."

Bangladesh's main city, Dhaka, where the court convened, was under enhanced protection before the ruling on Monday, with many of Hasina's critics organizing a demonstration and cheering as the judgment was announced.

The city has seen a notable rise in disturbances, with numerous incendiary devices set off and coaches ignited in the days leading up to the verdict.

A minimum of one detonation was reported in Dhaka on Monday morning, with no victims identified, local police official Jisanul Haque stated to press agencies.

The student-led uprising in the previous year began with calls to eliminate public sector reservation policies but transformed into a wider anti-government movement.

United Nations rights examiners stated in a document in February that the nearly 1,400 casualties could represent "crimes against humanity".

The paper detailed the firing at close quarters of certain demonstrators, the deliberate maiming of additional individuals, unjustified apprehensions and torture.

Unauthorized recordings of a telephone conversation involving Hasina verified by investigative sources in previous months implied she had authorized the use of "fatal instruments" in July 2024. The recording was presented in court during the trial.

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

A family representative, whose brother was shot dead in July 2024, said he wanted "severe penalty" for the former leader and associates who have "performed revengeful deeds and abused their power".

Lucky Akther, whose partner was fatally injured near Dhaka in August 2024, said she wanted her penalty to be "implemented before the election".

"Solely at that point the families of those killed [in the protests] will obtain solace in their minds."

Since Hasina's ousting, an temporary leadership under the guidance of Nobel laureate Muhammad Yunus has taken charge. A general election is scheduled for February 2026.

Nonetheless, the Hasina's political party, her political faction, was banned by Bangladesh's temporary leadership in May.

Hasina warned during the past month that if the her faction's nominees were barred from participating in the forthcoming vote, millions would boycott the ballot.

This decision presents a diplomatic challenge for India and Bangladesh. The Bangladesh government has asked her extradition but so far India has demonstrated no inclination to acquiesce.

Her officially designated attorney her legal counsel said he was "disappointed and hoping the verdict had been different".

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

The previous week, Hasina's lawyers said they had submitted an immediate petition to the UN pointing out major judicial fairness and judicial process problems at the ICT.

Hasina was tried together with her ex-interior minister and police chief.

Although the punishment offers some closure to relatives of the deceased in the protests, it may do little to soothe the country's political divisions.

"The anger against Sheikh Hasina and the the former ruling faction has not diminished," a civil liberties campaigner in Dhaka informed media outlets. "Both she and the organization has expressed regret or demonstrated contrition for the deaths of numerous individuals."

She said "It makes it difficult for the party to be accepted by a bulk of the population in this nation."

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

"We work with multiple individuals who lost their limbs forever, they are now disabled, as a result of the harsh measures. They cannot pardon her."

A journalist, a commentator on the nation's politics, said the "inherent character of the guilty verdict could make it particularly hard" for her party to become a standard element of the nation's political landscape again.

This may change if "a form of contrition emerges and a disassociation with the former leader and the old leadership," he stated.