<p>Sri Lankan President Gotabaya Rajapaksa on Monday dissolved Parliament six months ahead of its schedule and called a snap election on April 25.</p>.<p>He signed the Gazette notification dissolving Parliament from midnight tonight, the Government Printers Department said.</p>.<p>The current parliament was appointed on September 1, 2015.</p>.<p>Rajapaksa sacked Parliament after the minimum term of four-and-a-half years necessary to dissolve it was completed on midnight Sunday.</p>.<p>According to the notification, elections will be held on April 25 and the new Parliament will have its first session on May 14.</p>.<p>The political parties and independent candidates can file nominations to contest the poll between March 12 and 19.</p>.<p>Over 16.2 million voters are eligible to vote to elect 196 members under proportional representation and a further 29 members on national cumulative votes of each party based on proportional representation.</p>.<p>President Rajapaksa, who named his elder brother and former strongman Mahinda Rajapaksa as the prime minister of the caretaker cabinet in December, earlier said he wanted two-thirds seats in the 225-member assembly.</p>
<p>Sri Lankan President Gotabaya Rajapaksa on Monday dissolved Parliament six months ahead of its schedule and called a snap election on April 25.</p>.<p>He signed the Gazette notification dissolving Parliament from midnight tonight, the Government Printers Department said.</p>.<p>The current parliament was appointed on September 1, 2015.</p>.<p>Rajapaksa sacked Parliament after the minimum term of four-and-a-half years necessary to dissolve it was completed on midnight Sunday.</p>.<p>According to the notification, elections will be held on April 25 and the new Parliament will have its first session on May 14.</p>.<p>The political parties and independent candidates can file nominations to contest the poll between March 12 and 19.</p>.<p>Over 16.2 million voters are eligible to vote to elect 196 members under proportional representation and a further 29 members on national cumulative votes of each party based on proportional representation.</p>.<p>President Rajapaksa, who named his elder brother and former strongman Mahinda Rajapaksa as the prime minister of the caretaker cabinet in December, earlier said he wanted two-thirds seats in the 225-member assembly.</p>