The issue was raised via an adjournment motion by Dilip Valse-Patil (Congress), who informed the house that the onion producers have taken this step to press their demand for remunerative price. The rasta roko has resulted in hinderances to the vehicular traffic on the highways.

Valse-Patil sought a discussion on the issue by setting aside the other subjects on the agenda.

When speaker Datta Nalawade rejected the adjournment motion notice disallowing discussion on the issue, opposition members including RR Patil, Madhav Kinhalkar, Digvijay Khanvilkar, Shravan Parate (all Congress), Minakshi Patil (PWP), Narsayya Adam (CPM), Sohel Lokhandwala (SP) approached the podium shouting slogans in favour of their demand.

The speaker in his ruling said that morchas,processions and agitation could not be issues of the adjournment motion. He continued reading the subjects on the agenda amidst utter commotion. Leader of opposition in the house Madhukar Pichad said the agitating members wanted the government to make its statement on Saturday itself in the house. The speaker said he has already directed the government to make the statement on the issue while rejecting the notice of adjournment motion.

Chief minister Manohar Joshi said he was ready to reply to all queries raised by opposition members if they did not mix the issue with politics. The government would not give in to any pressure brought on the government by way of an uproar in the house, he said. The government statement on the issue would be made in the house next week before the completion of the state legislature session, he added.Meanwhile, the state assembly on Saturday witnessed noisy scenes during question hour when opposition members insisted on discussing the question related to the Srikrishnainquiry commission's report on the Mumbai riots.

In the starred question booklet, the question relating to the Srikrishna inquiry commission was listed last and the opposition members including Madhukar Pichad, Rohidas Patil, Digvijay Khanvilkar, Babanrao Pachpute (all Congress), Sambhaji Pawar (JD), Wamanrao Chatap (Ind) and others suggested the chair to take up the question first or spare ten minutes for discussion on the question.

However, Sharad Tasare, who was in the chair, ruled that there was no such procedure to change the numbers of the question. When the opposition suggestion was rejected, the house witnessed unruly scenes.

The chief minister said that if the Srikrishna commission issue was a serious one for the opposition, the members should finish disscussions on all the 25 questions and take up the 26th question regarding the inquiry.

The government was prepared to reply to the members' queries, he said. Only seven questions could be discussed during the question hour.