🔗 Share this article

The ex-prime minister of Bangladesh has been handed capital punishment for human rights violations over her severe measures on student-led protests which caused her removal from power.

Hasina was declared culpable of allowing lethal force to be used against demonstrators, among whom around 1,400 people were killed during the turmoil in the previous year.

Legal proceedings were conducted without her presence by the special international tribunal in Bangladesh, since she went into exile in India after being removed from office in July 2024.

Prosecutors accused her of being the mastermind of hundreds of killings during the protests. She has refuted all charges, labeling the proceedings as "prejudiced and driven by politics".

This judgment represents a pivotal moment for Bangladesh, as the protests unleashed anger over extended periods of oppression. Families of those killed and injured had called for strict sentences.

Answering the judgment in a five-page statement, the former leader stated the capital punishment was the caretaker administration's way of "eliminating her political faction" as a governing body and that she was satisfied of her leadership's history on individual freedoms.

"I have no trepidation to confront those accusing me in a just legal forum where the proof can be evaluated and reviewed impartially."

Bangladesh's main city, Dhaka, where the court convened, was under increased safeguards before the ruling on Monday, with numerous opponents of Hasina holding a protest and applauding as the judgment was announced.

The capital witnessed a sudden increase in unrest, with dozens of bombs exploded and public transport vehicles burned in the days leading up to the verdict.

One explosive incident was reported in Dhaka on Monday morning, with zero injuries documented, regional security representative Jisanul Haque stated to media outlets.

The protest movement led by students in the previous year commenced through calls to eliminate public sector reservation policies but evolved into a wider anti-government movement.

UN human rights investigators said in a report in February that the around 1,400 fatalities could constitute "crimes against humanity".

The paper detailed the firing at close quarters of certain demonstrators, the intentional injuring of further participants, unwarranted detentions and torture.

Leaked audio of a telephone conversation involving Hasina verified by external reviews in previous months indicated she had approved the use of "lethal weapons" in July 2024. The audio was played in court during the legal process.

Ahead of the verdict, kin of those fatally injured in the unrest told press outlets they wanted strict consequences for Hasina.

One relative, whose sibling was killed in July 2024, said he wanted "severe penalty" for Hasina and others who have "performed revengeful deeds and misused their authority".

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

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

After her departure, an temporary leadership headed by economic expert Muhammad Yunus has assumed control. A parliamentary election is set for February 2026.

Nevertheless, the Hasina's political party, her political faction, was prohibited by Bangladesh's caretaker administration in May.

She alerted last month that if the her faction's nominees were barred from participating in the upcoming election, countless would abstain the election.

This decision presents a international dilemma for India and Bangladesh. Authorities have sought her extradition but until now India has shown no willingness to agree.

Hasina's state-appointed lawyer her legal counsel said he was "disappointed and hoping the verdict had been different".

"I am unable to challenge because my represented individuals are away; which is why I am disappointed," he stated further.

Recently, the defense attorneys said they had filed an urgent appeal to the UN raising significant due process and judicial process problems at the ICT.

The former leader faced trial alongside her ex-interior minister and police chief.

Even though the verdict grants partial finality to families of killed in the protests, it may do little to soothe the country's political divisions.

"The fury directed at Sheikh Hasina and the her political party has not diminished," a Dhaka-based rights activist stated to news organizations. "Both she and the organization has expressed regret or demonstrated contrition for the fatalities of countless citizens."

She said "This creates challenges for the party to be accepted by a most citizens in this state."

The campaigner further stated that the penalty was not resolution for the families of those fatally and non-fatally harmed.

"We work with multiple individuals 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 her party to become a standard element of Bangladeshi politics again.

This might transform if "there is some kind of apology and a separation from Sheikh Hasina and the former hierarchy," he expressed.