Bangladesh's Ousted Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina Given to Death

The ex-prime minister of Bangladesh has been sentenced to death for atrocities due to her harsh response 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, 1,400 of whom lost their lives during the disturbances last year.

The trial proceeded while she was absent by the International Crimes Tribunal (ICT) in Bangladesh, as she resides in exile in India after being removed from office in July 2024.

Legal authorities charged her of being the mastermind of hundreds of killings during the protests. She has refuted every accusation, labeling the proceedings as "biased and politically motivated".

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

Reacting to the verdict in a five-page statement, she expressed the execution sentence was the temporary leadership's way of "eradicating 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 meet my challengers in a fair court where the proof can be evaluated and tested fairly."

The capital, Dhaka, where the tribunal took place, was under tightened security ahead of the verdict on Monday, with many of Hasina's critics staging a rally and cheering as the sentence was declared.

Dhaka experienced a sudden increase in unrest, with multiple explosives detonated and buses set on fire in the period preceding the verdict.

One explosive incident was noted in Dhaka on Monday morning, with no victims identified, regional security representative Jisanul Haque told media outlets.

The youth-driven revolt last year commenced through calls to eliminate state employment quotas but evolved into a more extensive dissent initiative.

United Nations rights examiners stated in a document in February that the around 1,400 fatalities could constitute "crimes against humanity".

The study recorded the firing at close quarters of certain demonstrators, the deliberate maiming of further participants, arbitrary arrests and torture.

Unauthorized recordings of one of Hasina's phone calls authenticated by media examinations earlier this year implied she had authorized the use of "deadly arms" in July 2024. The recording was presented in court during the legal process.

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

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

Another relative, whose spouse died near Dhaka in August 2024, said she wanted Hasina's sentence to be "executed before the election".

"Only then the kin of victims [in the protests] will obtain solace in their hearts."

After her departure, an temporary leadership led by economist Muhammad Yunus has assumed power. A national vote is set for February 2026.

However, the Awami League, Hasina's political party, was outlawed by Bangladesh's interim government in May.

Hasina warned in the previous month that if the her faction's nominees were prohibited from running in the forthcoming vote, countless would abstain the vote.

The verdict now poses a diplomatic challenge for India and Bangladesh. The Bangladesh government has asked her extradition but so far India has shown no willingness to comply.

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

"I even cannot appeal because my defendants are not present; that's why I am disappointed," he added.

Recently, her legal team said they had lodged a prompt application to the UN pointing out serious fair trial and due process issues at the ICT.

Legal proceedings involved Hasina alongside her former home minister and top law enforcement officer.

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

"The anger against Hasina and the the former ruling faction has not decreased," a civil liberties campaigner in Dhaka stated to media outlets. "The leader and her faction has expressed regret or displayed repentance for the fatalities of countless citizens."

The activist stated "This complicates matters for the faction to gain approval by a bulk of the population in this country."

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

"We support numerous persons who suffered permanent amputations, they are amputees now, as a result of the harsh measures. They are incapable of excusing her."

A journalist, a commentator on the nation's politics, 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 may change if "a form of contrition emerges and a distancing from Sheikh Hasina and the old leadership," he expressed.