Sri Lankan President schedules parliament elections for April 8th

Sri Lanka's President, Mahinda Rajapaksa, has dissolved parliament and scheduled fresh elections for April 8th.

On Tuesday, Mahinda Rajapaksa's called for parliamentary elections. The latest political shake up comes on the heels of last month's presidential vote, in which Rajapaksa beat former army commander General Sarath Fonseka by a landslide.

The upcoming parliamentary contest will be another bitter race between the government and the opposition.

Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa, left, laughs as his wife Shiranthi Rajapaksa looks on during the 62nd Independence Day celebrations in Kandy, Sri Lanka, Thursday, Feb. 4, 2010. (AP Photo/Eranga Jayawardena)