🔗 Share this article

Bangladesh's former prime minister has been given a death sentence for human rights violations over her harsh response on youth demonstrations which resulted in her ousting.

The court convicted Sheikh Hasina of allowing lethal force to be used against activists, among whom around 1,400 people lost their lives during the disturbances in the previous year.

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

Legal authorities charged her of being behind multiple fatalities during the protests. The former leader rejected all charges, describing the process as "prejudiced and driven by politics".

This judgment represents a critical juncture for Bangladesh, as the protests brought forth resentment over years of repression. Families of those killed and harmed had requested tough penalties.

Reacting to the verdict in a five-page statement, Hasina said the death penalty was the interim government's way of "eliminating her political faction" as a electoral entity and that she was satisfied of her leadership's history on individual freedoms.

"I do not fear to face my accusers in a proper tribunal where the proof can be evaluated and examined justly."

The nation's capital, Dhaka, where the tribunal took place, was under tightened security prior to the decision on Monday, with numerous opponents of Hasina organizing a demonstration and cheering as the verdict was read.

Dhaka experienced a sudden increase in disturbances, with multiple explosives detonated and coaches ignited in the period preceding the verdict.

A minimum of one detonation was reported in Dhaka on Monday morning, with zero injuries documented, regional security representative the police spokesperson informed news organizations.

The protest movement led by students in the previous year started 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 nearly 1,400 casualties could constitute "violations of human dignity".

The report documented the gunfire from minimal distance of certain demonstrators, the purposeful disabling of further participants, unjustified apprehensions and torture.

Unauthorized recordings of a telephone conversation involving Hasina confirmed by investigative sources in previous months implied she had approved the use of "deadly arms" in July 2024. The recording was presented in court during the legal process.

Before the decision, family members of those who died in the demonstrations stated to media representatives they wanted strict consequences for Hasina.

Ramjan Ali, whose brother was shot dead in July 2024, said he wanted "strict sentence" for her and co-accused who have "committed acts of vengeance and exploited their positions".

A different family member, whose spouse died near Dhaka in August 2024, said she wanted the former leader's punishment to be "carried out before the election".

"Exclusively thereafter the relatives of the deceased [in the protests] will achieve closure in their hearts."

Following her removal, an caretaker administration under the guidance of economist Muhammad Yunus has assumed power. A general election is planned for February 2026.

However, the Awami League, Hasina's political party, was prohibited by Bangladesh's caretaker administration in May.

She alerted during the past month that if the the League's representatives were barred from participating in the imminent electoral process, millions would boycott the election.

The verdict now poses a diplomatic challenge for India and Bangladesh. Dhaka has formally requested her return but until now India has expressed no readiness to acquiesce.

Her officially designated attorney the defense lawyer said he was "unhappy and desiring the outcome had varied".

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

Recently, the defense attorneys said they had filed an urgent appeal to the UN pointing out significant due process and due process issues at the ICT.

Hasina was tried in conjunction with her ex-interior minister and top law enforcement officer.

Although the punishment grants partial finality to relatives of the deceased in the protests, it may have minimal effect on calming the country's political divisions.

"The fury directed at Hasina and the her political party has not decreased," a civil liberties campaigner in Dhaka stated to news organizations. "The leader and her faction has apologised or demonstrated contrition for the deaths of numerous individuals."

The advocate declared "It makes it difficult for the faction to gain approval by a most citizens in this nation."

The campaigner further stated that the sentence was not closure for the kin of those fatally and non-fatally harmed.

"We work with numerous persons who lost their limbs forever, they are currently without limbs, due to the crackdown. They cannot pardon her."

An analyst, a commentator on the nation's politics, said the "fundamental aspect of the condemnation could make it increasingly challenging" for Awami League to become a normal feature of Bangladeshi politics again.

This might transform if "an expression of regret occurs and a disassociation with Hasina and the former hierarchy," he said.