DHAKA – A Bangladesh 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 in 2024. The verdict was delivered in Hasina’s absence after she fled to India in August 2024, and comes ahead of parliamentary elections expected in February.
Read More: Bangladesh court convicts ousted PM Sheikh Hasina of crimes against Humanity
The International Crimes Tribunal, Bangladesh’s domestic war crimes court, stated that prosecutors had found evidence showing Hasina directly commanded the use of lethal force to suppress protests between July and August 2024, which the United Nations reported left up to 1,400 people dead — the worst violence in the country since its 1971 independence war. Hasina’s Awami League party has been barred from contesting the upcoming elections, raising fears of renewed unrest.
Hasina was represented by a state-appointed defence lawyer who rejected the charges, calling them baseless, while her son and adviser, Sajeeb Wazed, said they would not appeal the verdict unless a democratically elected government including the Awami League assumed power. Ahead of the ruling, the country had witnessed at least 30 crude bomb explosions and 26 vehicles set on fire, though no casualties were reported.
Read More: Sheikh Hasina’s interviews reveal defiance, not remorse, after ouster
The death sentence can still be challenged in the Supreme Court, offering a legal avenue for review. The verdict has heightened political tensions in Bangladesh, with authorities maintaining tight security across Dhaka and other major cities.