During a session in Mexico City’s congress on Monday, a debate spiraled into a physical altercation as legislators pulled hair, exchanged punches, and pushed each other around the podium. The uproar was triggered by an opposition protest concerning the city’s transparency institute.
Footage from inside the legislative chamber captured the rapid escalation into violence, with some lawmakers engaging in the fray while others stood by documenting the chaos with their phones.
According to a report by Reuters, the altercation erupted amidst discussions about the potential dissolution of Mexico City’s transparency institute.
The conflict ignited when one legislator grabbed another’s hand, leading the second to pull away and retaliate with an elbow to the abdomen.
The situation intensified when the initial woman responded by hitting her counterpart on the back, subsequently grabbing her hair as tensions flared further.
The first woman retaliated by striking her in the back, then seized the other woman’s hair as the scuffle escalated.
A man stepped in and tried to pry her hand loose, but more lawmakers rushed forward as shoving spread across the dais.
A Mexico City debate over the city’s transparency institute erupted into a chaotic brawl as lawmakers shoved, struck and filmed one another, forcing the session to move. (Mexico City Congress Handout)
Several women were seen pushing and grappling while bystanders lifted phones to record the chaos.
Lawmakers from the opposition National Action Party had taken over the congressional podium to protest the measure at the center of the debate.
Pictured: An Aerial view of Mexico City on Sep. 8, 2016, Mexico. (Frédéric Soltan/Corbis via Getty Images)
The opposition accused Morena – the ruling party – of breaking an agreement to create a new transparency body, sparking the podium occupation.
The session unraveled as shouting escalated, and rival groups clashed across the chamber.
The meeting was ultimately suspended and relocated to another venue, so lawmakers could resume deliberations, local media reported.
