DHAKA: A Bangladeshi court on Monday sentenced ousted Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina to death, concluding a months-long trial that found her guilty of ordering a deadly crackdown on a student-led uprising last year.
The verdict, delivered by the International Crimes Tribunal in Dhaka amid tight security, comes ahead of parliamentary elections expected in early February, raising concerns about renewed unrest across the country. Hasina, 78, who fled to India in August 2024, was tried in absentia after defying court orders to return for the proceedings.
During the trial, prosecutors alleged that Hasina directly commanded security forces to use lethal force against the student-led protests in July and August 2024, resulting in the deaths of up to 1,400 people and injuring thousands more, according to a United Nations report marking the worst political violence in Bangladesh since its 1971 war of independence. Hasina’s state-appointed defense counsel dismissed the charges as baseless, while Hasina herself described the verdict as biased and politically motivated, claiming it was orchestrated by an unelected government.
The ruling also bars her Awami League party from participating in the upcoming elections, intensifying fears of political instability. Hasina’s son and adviser, Sajeeb Wazed, stated they would not appeal the death sentence unless a democratically elected government allowed the Awami League’s involvement. In recent days, tensions have escalated in Bangladesh with at least 30 crude bomb explosions and 26 vehicles set ablaze, though no casualties have been reported so far.
The death sentence remains subject to appeal in the Supreme Court, but the country braces for potential unrest as it approaches a highly charged election period under the shadow of one of the most polarizing verdicts in its recent history.