The Tamil Nadu government on Tuesday introduced a Bill to repeal the Dr. J. Jayalalithaa University Act, and another Bill to amend the Annamalai University Act 2013 to convert it from a unitary institution into an affiliating type university. Objecting to the move, AIADMK legislators walked out of the House and staged a protest on the road outside Kalaivanar Arangam leading to their detention by the police.
The government also tabled a Bill to amend the Bharathidasan University Act.
Tabling the Bills in the Legislative Assembly, Higher Education Minister K. Ponmudi said the government had decided to convert the Annamalai University from a unitary type to an affiliating type, by affiliating [arts and science] colleges in Villupuram, Cuddalore, Kallakurichi and Mayiladuthurai districts, and accordingly amend the Annamalai University Act, 2013 (Tamil Nadu Act 20 of 2013) and the Bharathidasan University Act, 1981 (Tamil Nadu Act 2 of 1982) suitably and also to repeal the Dr. J. Jayalalithaa University Act, 2021 (Tamil Nadu Act 5 of 2021) for the said purpose. Consequently, Bharathidasan University would no longer be the affiliating university for arts and science colleges in Mayiladuthurai.
When the AIADMK members protested, leader of the House Duraimurugan quipped that they had already decided to stage a walkout.
Earlier this year, the erstwhile AIADMK government had enacted the Dr. J. Jayalalithaa University Act with Villupuram as its headquarters to affiliate institutions in Villupuram, Cuddalore and Kallakurichi districts, which were previously under the jurisdiction of the Vellore-headquartered Thiruvalluvar University.
