Dhaka , Bangladesh ( CNN ) -- Polls closed in Bangladesh 's parliamentary elections Sunday amid a boycott by major opposition parties and violence that left at least 16 people dead , officials said . Officials announced some results Sunday night . But disputes over the vote appeared to be far from over , with the country 's largest opposition party calling for a fresh round of protests starting Monday against what they called `` farcical polls . '' Kazi Rakibuddin Ahmad , Bangladesh 's chief election commissioner , said cold weather and the opposition boycott fueled a low turnout nationwide . But a senior leader of the ruling Awami League said people `` spontaneously cast votes and rejected ( the ) opposition 's violent activities . '' `` It 's a victory of democracy , '' Tofail Ahmed told reporters . Police officials reported violence in many parts of the country as opposition activists hoping to foil elections clashed with officers . Police in some areas told CNN they fired tear gas and shots at protesters who tried to attack polling stations . The capital of Dhaka was largely peaceful , but voter turnout was low . `` Presence of voters today is lower than any other time of voting , '' said Gazi Aslim Uddin , a presiding officer at a voting station in old Dhaka . Opposition protesters do n't trust Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and her administration and want a neutral caretaker government to oversee the vote to make sure it is fair . But that caretaker system was scrapped a few years ago . With mistrust mounting , Bangladesh has seen a series of incidents of deadly street violence over the elections in recent months . Local civic groups and international communities urged the government to cancel the voting and reschedule the elections . The largest opposition party , the Bangladesh Nationalist Party , and its allies boycotted Sunday 's elections and enforced a general strike to thwart voting . Attackers torched about 150 polling centers and election materials nationwide . The boycott was expected to ensure a victory for the ruling Awami League party . Violence stopped voting at some centers , the country 's chief election commissioner said , and officials plan to hold new polls at those locations on January 24 . Senior BNP leader Osman Farruk demanded cancellation of the elections results and called for fresh elections under a neutral caretaker government . The election unrest underscores persistent problems in the South Asian nation , a country grappling with grinding poverty , political instability and development challenges . Bangladesh protesters torch schools marked as voting centers . Journalist Tania Rashid contributed to this report .
Bangladesh : Election - related violence nationwide leaves at least 100 dead . NEW : The country 's largest opposition party protests against ` ` farcical polls '' NEW : A leader of the opposition Awami League says vote was ` ` symbol of democracy ''