The police say that they have been charged with contempt and interference with council members.

With heckling and shoving on both sides, the two opposing camps came to blows over the appointment of the chair of a key committee.

None of the participating pro-Beijing politicians have been detained.

It is the latest in a series of arrests of Chinese critics in Hong Kong after Beijing imposed a sweeping new national security law in June.

A police statement said that as part of an investigation into the 8 May meeting, six men and one woman were arrested, which descended into chaos amid a row over who should control a key committee in the legislature.

Those arrested included Wu Chi-wai, Andrew Wan Siu-kin, and Helena Wong Pik-wan of the Democratic Party, and Fernando Cheung Chiu-hung and Kwok Wing-kin of the Labour Party.

Also detained on Sunday morning were ex-legislators Eddie Chu Hoi-dick and Raymond Chan Chi-Chuen.

If convicted, they face up to a year in jail.

They were among a group of pro-democracy legislators who, after pro-Beijing councilors forcibly installed one of their politicians as the committee leader after months of deadlock, attempted to storm the chairperson's seat in the Legislative Council.

After attempting to physically reach the chair, Mr. Chu was carried out of the room by four security guards holding each of his limbs.

Live on TV, a pro-Beijing politician was shown dragging Mr. Chan out by his collar.

On Sunday, police chief inspector Chan Wing-yu told reporters, "Some lawmakers rushed towards the security guards around the rostrum and made it impossible for the meeting to continue."

"In accordance with the law and evidence collected during the recent police investigation, law enforcement action is taken ... I would like to reiterate that enforcement action taken on that basis is not about the social status or political background" of those arrested, he added.

Opposition politicians, however, questioned why they had not charged any of the legislators from the opposing side.

The arrests were described as "arbitrary" by the Democratic Party, adding: "In the face of an authoritarian regime, we will not back down."

The 8 May incident was the first in a series of council confrontations over who would have the authority to legislate contentious bills, including one approved later in June criminalizing national anthem disrespect.

Teen activist Tony Chung became the second person to be charged separately last week under the new security law, which makes it easier to punish protesters and gives Beijing extensive new powers to shape life in the territory.

Western governments and human rights groups have widely condemned the law, with critics saying it put an end to freedoms guaranteed for 50 years after British rule ended in Hong Kong in 1997.

Western governments and human rights groups have widely condemned the law, with critics saying it put an end to freedoms guaranteed for 50 years after British rule ended in Hong Kong in 1997.

One of the central issues in last year's protests, the BBC's John Sudworth in Beijing reports, was the way Hong Kong's electoral system is stacked in favor of pro-Beijing politicians.

Our correspondent adds that the sweeping new national security law has come with warnings that it could be used to target future parliamentary protests, with much harsher sentences of 10 years to life.