Bangladesh’s Ousted PM Sheikh Hasina Sentenced To Death For Authorizing Attack On Protesters

Bangladesh’s former prime minister, Sheikh Hasina, has been sentenced to death after a tribunal convicted her of crimes against humanity for ordering a violent crackdown on last year’s student-led uprising.

Tried in absentia while exiled in India, Hasina was accused of directing bomb drops from helicopters and authorising the use of lethal close-range weapons on protesters.

The UN estimated up to 1,400 d+aths, while the interim government reported more than 800 killed and around 14,000 injured.

The unrest, initially sparked by disputes over government job allocations, quickly escalated into nationwide bloodshed.

Hasina, who fled to India in August 2024 after 15 years in power, denounced the ruling as “biased and politically motivated,” insisting she never ordered killings and was ready to face a “proper tribunal.”

The court also handed death sentences to former home minister Asaduzzaman Khan, also in India, while a former police chief received five years after turning state witness.

The ruling — one of the most consequential against a Bangladeshi leader since independence — comes ahead of February’s parliamentary elections.

Dhaka has urged New Delhi to return Hasina under an existing treaty, while India said it had noted the verdict and would continue engaging constructively with all parties.

Protesters gathered outside the museum home of Hasina’s late father during the announcement, calling for the building’s demolition.