Long-time Bangladeshi leader Sheikh Hasina is ready to face trial back home after fleeing protesters on Monday, her son Sajeeb Wazed told Reuters.

"The threat of arrest has never scared my mother before," he said from Washington on Saturday.

"My mother has done nothing wrong. Just because people in her government did illegal things, did not mean my mother ordered it. That does not mean my mother is responsible for that." 'We did everything we could'

ABC News reported that students who led the protests have demanded Ms Hasina face trial after Bangladesh saw five weeks of intense violence, killing at least 455 and injuring thousands.

The demonstrations which eventually ousted the leader rose from discontent over a job quota system which prioritised veterans who fought in 1971 independence war.

Students accused the government of using the system to benefit supporters of Ms Hasina's Awami League party, which spearheaded the independence movement.

The protests soon flared into nationwide unrest, reflecting broader frustrations about the economy, corruption and an authoritarian turn under Hasina's government.

Police were caught on camera throwing tear gas and stun grenades and opening fire on demonstrators, while the government shut down internet and communication services across the nation.

Joy did not say who in the government was responsible for allowing the shooting of people during the protests. "A government is a big, big machinery," he said.

"Those who are responsible, they should be brought to justice." "My mother absolutely did not order anyone to commit violence against the protesters."

After a national security cabinet meeting earlier this month, Ms Hasina urged security forces to increase violence used against the protesters. She insisted the protesters were not students but ‘terrorists who are out to destabilise the nation’. "I appeal to our countrymen to suppress these terrorists with a strong hand," she said.

Joy still said police ‘were trying to stop the violence’ and only ‘some’ used excessive force. "Our government immediately, and I was part of those conversations, I also told my mother, we need to immediately tell [our students wing] not to attack, stop the violence," he said.