Dhaka, November 17, 2025: A Bangladeshi tribunal on Monday sentenced ousted Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina to death, concluding a months-long trial that found her guilty of ordering lethal force against a student-led uprising last year — a verdict that threatens to inflame an already volatile political landscape ahead of national elections.
The ruling was handed down by the International Crimes Tribunal (ICT), Bangladesh’s domestic war-crimes court, amid extraordinary security in Dhaka. Hasina, who fled to India in August 2024 following weeks of unrest and the collapse of her government, was tried in absentia. The verdict is subject to appeal in the Supreme Court.
The judgement comes as Bangladesh prepares for parliamentary elections expected in early February 2026. Hasina’s Awami League, which ruled the country for more than a decade until last year’s upheaval, has been barred from contesting — a decision critics say has already cast doubt on the credibility of the upcoming vote.
Analysts fear Monday’s verdict could trigger a fresh wave of violence, deepening the political crisis that began when mass student protests erupted in mid-2024.
During the trial, prosecutors alleged that Hasina directly commanded security forces to crush the July–August 2024 uprising, which was initially sparked by anger over quota reforms and later swelled into nationwide anti-government demonstrations.
A United Nations report earlier estimated that up to 1,400 people were killed between July 15 and August 5, 2024, with thousands more injured — most of them by gunfire fired by police and paramilitary forces. It marked Bangladesh’s deadliest unrest since the 1971 Liberation War.
Hasina’s court-appointed defence counsel dismissed the charges as baseless, arguing that the prosecution had failed to prove she issued direct orders to use lethal force.
Ahead of the verdict, Hasina condemned the proceedings, calling the outcome “a foregone conclusion” and questioning the tribunal’s impartiality.
Her son and political adviser, Sajeeb Wazed, told Reuters on Sunday that they would not file an appeal unless a “democratically elected government” took office that included participation from the Awami League.
Bangladesh has been on high alert in recent days, with security forces deployed across major cities. At least 30 crude bomb explosions and 26 vehicles torched were reported nationwide ahead of the ruling, though no casualties were recorded.
Political observers warn that the verdict — combined with the exclusion of the Awami League from the upcoming polls — could deepen polarisation and lead to further instability in the weeks ahead.
