An opposition lawmaker was taken out in a wheelchair from the Italian Chamber of Deputies, the lower house of the parliament, after a fight broke out between the people's representatives in the plenary hall, reported DPA, quoted by BTA.
Leonardo Dono from the populist Movement "5 stars" (D5Z), was pushed by other MPs and knocked to the ground during ugly scenes in the Chamber of Deputies, the larger of the two chambers of the Italian parliament, local media reported.
A bill on so-called differentiated autonomy, introduced by the right-wing government of Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, was being discussed in the chamber at the time.
The draft law provides for the individual administrative regions of Italy to be given wider rights of self-governance. The opposition criticized the adoption of such a measure.
Regions, above all in the Italian South, fear that in this way the state could withdraw from important sectors such as health and education, which could harm the population in economically less developed regions.
During the debates on the first reading of the bill a few months ago, there were verbal altercations between the government and the opposition in the Senate.
During the second reading debates in the lower house, opposition MPs waved Italian flags and sang the national anthem. They announced that they feared that the "disintegration of Italy" could be reached.
On video, Donno can be seen trying to hand a flag to the Minister for Regional Affairs and Autonomy, Roberto Calderoli, but at that moment other MPs rush towards him to confront him.
It is not entirely clear from the footage whether Donno is subsequently knocked to the ground by punches or kicks. The Speaker of the House adjourned the meeting and announced that he will carefully watch the video recordings of what happened, and then he will take measures.
In a comment to La7 TV about the events, Dono said he was waiting to be examined in hospital after he was punched and received "several kicks".
"They hit me really hard in the sternum and I fell to the ground, I couldn't breathe," he said. "I was quite scared. I never imagined that such a thing could happen in the Chamber of Deputies, I still can't believe it."
In a post on social networks, Dono D5Z's party described the events as "ugly and shameful" and called for severe and immediate punishment for the guilty.