Security Heightened in Bangladesh Ahead of Special Tribunal’s Verdict Against Former PM Hasina

PTI, DHAKA, NOV 16, 2025 : Security has been beefed up across Bangladesh with police in the national capital ordered to shoot violent protesters ahead of a special tribunal’s verdict against deposed Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina over alleged crimes against humanity. The prosecution reiterated on Sunday its demand for the death penalty for her.

On Monday, Bangladesh’s International Crimes Tribunal (ICT-BD) is set to deliver the verdict against 78-year-old Hasina after her trial in absentia. “We have sought the highest possible sentence for Hasina. Additionally, we requested the seizure of the convict’s property to be distributed among the families of the martyrs and the injured victims (of last year’s violent street protests),” ICT-BD prosecutor Gazi MH Tamim told reporters.

The ICT-BD law would debar Hasina from challenging the verdict in the apex Appellate Division of the Supreme Court unless she surrenders or is arrested within 30 days after its delivery, Tamim said. The Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB) personnel have been deployed in four districts, including Dhaka, following a spate of violent incidents such as fires and crude bomb explosions linked to the imminent verdict in the case.

“The law enforcement agencies have already completed their necessary preparations” to prevent unpleasant events across the country,” Home Adviser Jahangir Alam Chowdhury was quoted as saying by the state-run Bangladesh Sangbad Sangstha (BSS) news agency.

Apart from the BGB deployment, police in Dhaka have been ordered to shoot violent protestors as tensions brewed over the law and order situation ahead of the Monday verdict.