New Delhi/Dhaka: The dramatic political transformation in Bangladesh began with a sweeping student uprising on August 5, 2024 — an event that forced former prime minister Sheikh Hasina from power and set off a series of developments culminating in her conviction and death sentence delivered in absentia by the International Crimes Tribunal–Bangladesh (ICT-BD) on Monday.
The following is a reconstructed chronology of the key moments over the 15 turbulent months that followed her ouster:
August 5, 2024
Massive student protests topple Sheikh Hasina’s government. She escapes to India hours after resigning.
August 8, 2024
A caretaker administration headed by Nobel laureate Muhammad Yunus takes charge.
August 14, 2024
The new interim leadership announces that all killings linked to the student uprising will be tried under the International Crimes Tribunal–Bangladesh (ICT-BD).
October 2024
The ICT-BD undergoes restructuring to prepare for the upcoming trials.
October 17, 2024
The tribunal issues arrest warrants for Hasina and 45 senior Awami League members, accusing them of crimes against humanity.
November 2024
The three-member ICT-BD panel, led by Justice Golam Mortuza Majumdar, instructs investigators to finish their inquiry by December.
February 2025
A United Nations fact-finding report estimates that nearly 1,400 people were killed during the 2024 protest movement.
June 1, 2025
Formal proceedings begin. Prosecutors allege that the violence during the uprising was systematic, planned, and targeted at unarmed civilians.
June 19, 2025
The tribunal appoints former Supreme Court judge A.Y. Moshiuzzaman as amicus curiae to represent Hasina’s defence in her absence.
July 2, 2025
Hasina receives a six-month sentence in absentia for contempt of court.
July 10, 2025
The tribunal frames charges against Hasina, former home minister Asaduzzaman Khan Kamal, and ex-police chief Chowdhury Abdullah Al-Mamun on five counts of crimes against humanity, including mass killings.
August 3, 2025
Full trial proceedings begin against Hasina and her two top associates, all accused of orchestrating widespread atrocities.
October 23, 2025
The ICT-BD concludes its hearings and reserves judgment.
November 13, 2025
The tribunal schedules November 17 as the date for delivering the verdict.
November 17, 2025
The ICT-BD announces its decision: Sheikh Hasina and former home minister Kamal are convicted and sentenced to death in absentia for crimes against humanity. Mamun, who cooperated as a state witness, is given a five-year prison term.
