Opposition legislators tried to hold up placards during the speech but were surrounded by ruling party lawmakers who punched them and grabbed the placards, resulting in a brawl.
Opposition lawmakers walked out after the attack. It was not immediately clear whether anyone was injured.
Meanwhile, Britain's Foreign Office on Monday urged Sri Lanka to release the findings of a government probe into the civil war against Tamil rebels.
The Lessons Learnt and Reconciliation Commission, (LLRC) which has been widely criticized as biased by international rights groups, handed over a 400-page report to Rajapaksa on Sunday. Rajapaksa has said he will make public the findings of the LLRC, Sri Lanka’s answer to calls from some Western governments, overseas Tamil Tiger supporters and rights groups for an independent investigation.
“The final report was handed over to the president by its chairman. The president will now study the report,” Bandula Jayasekara, the president’s director general of media, said.
It is expected to be presented to Parliament in December, officials have said, but the government has yet to give a date.
Many Western nations, India and others have said a credible report by the LLRC would, in conjunction with political concessions to minority Tamils, obviate the need for an outside inquiry.
The LLRC, appointed in May last year, was not mandated to probe war crimes but asked to find out why a Norwegian-brokered 2002 truce failed and to recommend ways to prevent the island slipping back to ethnic conflict.
"Many hope this report will mark a significant milestone in Sri Lanka's recovery from conflict," Alistair Burt, the Foreign Office minister with responsibility for Sri Lankan affairs, said.
"I call on the government of Sri Lanka to seize this important opportunity to demonstrate its commitment to national reconciliation and accountability.
"Making the report public at the earliest opportunity is a vital part of this commitment and I look forward to the government of Sri Lanka setting out the steps it will take in response to the report."
