Bangladesh’s ousted leader sentenced to death for crimes against humanity

By: Noah Williams

The former Prime Minister of Bangladesh, Sheikh Hasina, has been sentenced to death for crimes against humanity, the Bangladesh International Crimes Tribunal has ruled.

In a statement read out by the court, Hasina was found guilty of “committing crimes against humanity by her order to use drones, helicopters and lethal weapons against civilians,” in a crackdown against student-led protests across Bangladesh last year.

Hasina, who was forced to flee Bangladesh last year and seek exile in India, has denied all the charges against her and has labelled the trial “biased and politically motivated.” India has so far ignored requests for her extradition to face trial.

In early July 2024, student-led protests began over demands to remove quotas for civil service jobs, a third of which are reserved for veterans of the Bangladesh War of Independence and their relatives.

However, these protests quickly transformed into a nationwide anti-government movement, with vast civil disobedience growing through protests and attacks on government buildings. Due to Hasina’s crackdown using the police, restriction of internet access and instilling a nationwide curfew, the unrest worsened. Hasina justified these actions and claimed that she was opposing “terrorists” who sought to “destabilise the nation.”

The protests saw up to 1400 people killed, with a ruthless state crackdown whereby live ammunition was used against civilians, actions starkly condemned by human rights organisations. It was the worst episode of political violence in Bangladesh since the 1971 War of Independence. In the aftermath of weeks of unrest, Hasina was forced to step down as PM and seek exile in India.

The court ruled Hasina to be the “mastermind, conductor and superior commander” of that summer's atrocities.

Evidence used against her included a leaked phone call from July 2024, where Hasina authorised the use of “lethal weapons” to crack down on protestors.

In the courtroom, family members of the killed protestors broke down in tears as the ruling was announced. More broadly across Dhaka, Hasina’s critics staged a rally and erupted in cheers once the judgment was announced.

After her escape, the political situation in Bangladesh has been extremely volatile. An interim government headed by Nobel Peace Prize winner Muhammed Yunus has been in charge. They have labelled the decision by the court as “historic and profound,” but added an urgent call for calm, due to the vast intensity of the case.

The future of Bangladesh politics is also fragile. A parliamentary election is scheduled for February 2026. However, Yunus’s interim government has banned the Awami League, Hasina’s political party, from participating. She has warned its gravely undemocratic and threatened that millions would boycott the election if the ban stood, further unsettling Bangladesh’s democracy.

The UN have been involved too. Their human rights investigators said in a February report that 1400 deaths could constitute “crimes against humanity”, citing the illegal shooting of protestors at point-blank range and the use of torture methods and arbitrary arrests. However, the UN also reacted to Hasina’s sentence, stating it was “an important moment for victims”, but it opposed the death penalty “in all circumstances.”

This case has brought about significant geopolitical challenges for Bangladesh and its neighbour, India. Hasina has been living in exile in India since 2024, and the Indian government has repeatedly ignored requests and pressure to extradite her to Bangladesh. Under the 2013 bilateral extradition treaty, India can refuse to accept cases which it deems as “political in nature”, something Hasina claims to be accurate.

In addition, Hasina has been a longtime ally of India, and her long period of rule over Bangladesh fostered stronger cooperation between the two countries, both economically and diplomatically. Analysts argue that New Delhi fears that these relations are unravelling due to Dhaka’s new interim government's actions and Hasina’s case, which still remains unresolved. Furthermore, in New Delhi's view, the interim government of Bangladesh today has anti Indian sentiment, with PM Yunus continuously criticising India. India claims that handing Hasina back to Bangladesh would ultimately validate these critics.

Dhaka’s Ministry for Foreign Affairs has claimed that India has an “obligatory responsibility” to ensure Hasina’s extradition back to Bangladesh, adding that it “would be a highly unfriendly act and a disregard for justice” if they do not follow through with the warrant.

For Bangladesh’s interim government, India’s stance on this issue creates a large obstacle for court-mandated justice. The delay, or refusal, to extradite Hasina to Bangladesh only frustrates victims' families seeking closure, as well as bolsters those who view that the trial was a politically motivated act rather than a direct judicial action.

At the same time, the diplomatic tension between two of South Asia’s largest countries creates a deeper geopolitical reality. The true test may not lie in Hasina’s fate, but whether Bangladesh can use this verdict to build a more accountable political system as it approaches a pivotal 2026 election, or will it fall into a deep hole of political instability and dwindle relations with its most powerful neighbour.

Image: The Guardian