Bangladesh Court Sentences Ousted PM Sheikh Hasina to Death for Crimes Against Humanity
A Bangladesh court on Monday delivered a landmark judgment, sentencing ousted Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina to death after finding her guilty of crimes against humanity. The ruling, read to a packed courtroom in Dhaka and broadcast live nationwide, triggered cheers among spectators and has intensified debate about accountability and political justice in the country.
Hasina, aged 78, was tried in absentia after defying court orders to return from India. The charges centred on her alleged role in ordering a violent crackdown on a student‑led uprising that forced her removal from office in August 2024.
Presiding judge Golam Mortuza Mozumder declared that all elements of crimes against humanity had been established, convicting Hasina on three counts: incitement, issuing orders to kill, and failure to prevent atrocities. He imposed the death penalty, describing it as the only appropriate sentence.
Other senior officials were also convicted:
– Asaduzzaman Khan Kamal, former interior minister and fugitive, received a death sentence on four counts.
– Chowdhury Abdullah Al‑Mamun, former police chief, who pleaded guilty, was sentenced to five years’ imprisonment.
The trial, which heard months of testimony, was shaped by evidence of mass killings during Hasina’s final months in power. The United Nations estimates that up to 1,400 people were killed in crackdowns as she sought to retain control. Prosecutors argued that her failure to prevent widespread killings amounted to crimes against humanity under Bangladeshi law.
Chief prosecutor Tajul Islam said the verdict was intended to satisfy the people’s “thirst for justice” and mark an end to impunity for atrocities. Hasina, however, dismissed the proceedings as a “jurisprudential joke,” insisting in earlier interviews that the outcome was preordained.
Security was tightened across Dhaka ahead of the ruling, with checkpoints and armoured vehicles deployed. Reports of crude bomb attacks in recent weeks underscored the volatile political climate, as the country prepares for elections scheduled for February 2026.
Bangladesh’s foreign ministry has also clashed with India, demanding that New Delhi restrict Hasina’s access to media platforms while she remains in exile.
Despite her conviction, Hasina has remained defiant, acknowledging the loss of lives during the uprisings but warning that the ban on her former party, the Awami League, risks deepening the political crisis in a nation of 170 million people.
