Ex-PM Sheikh Hasina sentenced to death by Bangladesh tribunal for crimes against humanity

New Delhi: Deposed Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina was on Monday found guilty by the International Crimes Tribunal over her alleged role in the atrocities committed during the 2024 mass protests that led to the overthrow of her government, and was sentenced to death.

Chief prosecutor Mohammad Tajul Islam had reiterated the demand for the death penalty ahead of the verdict, calling Hasina the "mastermind and principal architect" behind the violence unleashed during the uprising.

A February 2025 report by the UN human rights office estimated that up to 1,400 people were killed between July 15 and August 15, 2024, during security crackdowns ordered by the Hasina administration. Following the nationwide unrest over a controversial quota system, Hasina fled to India on August 5, 2024; Nobel laureate Muhammad Yunus took over as chief adviser.

ICT-BD prosecutor Gazi MH Tamim said the prosecution had sought the maximum punishment for Hasina and requested confiscation of her property to be distributed among families of those killed or injured during last year's protests. Under tribunal rules, Hasina cannot challenge the verdict unless she surrenders or is arrested within 30 days.

Hasina, her former home minister Asaduzzaman Khan Kamal, and former inspector general of police Chowdhury Abdullah Al-Mamun were charged with murder, attempted murder, torture and other inhumane acts during the 2024 anti-government demonstrations. The tribunal framed charges on July 10.

Hasina and Kamal were tried in absentia and declared fugitives, while Mamun appeared in court and later turned approver.

Ahead of the verdict, violent clashes, arson and crude bomb attacks erupted across Dhaka and several other districts. The interim government deployed the army and Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB), while police in the capital were authorised to open fire on violent protesters.