This election was very difficult for the people to comprehend, said election observer Sharmeen Murshid.

"It was a many-layered, complex venture initiated by one party taking along  27 others, all either sharing the same symbol -- the boat -- or blessed by the initiator," Sharmeen, chief executive officer at the election observation group Brotee, said in an impromptu reaction to The Daily Star.

For the first time, the country witnessed a party pitting its candidates against its own ranks, she noted.

Additionally, for the first time, seats were given to opponents so that they became a "bonafide opposition", she said.

"The opposition and the actors have been set, and the 'hero' of the play is in the spotlight. The 'villain' has been successfully slain, and the story unfolds in a drama called casting vote.

"This was an election without grammar. ... I did not see an election. It didn't fit into anything ... results were the same," she added.

She further said that everything went according to plan.

"Peaceful elections, with stray incidents of violence, one dead, and some fake votes and skirmishes! Way better than any of the past elections we had! This ended with the EC declaring it a free, fair, peaceful election," Sharmeen said.

She added that 20, 30, or 40 percent turnout did not matter to those who won the election.