In his statement, he said assistant professors had been working on a consolidated pay basis for nearly 17 years, with their contracts renewed once every six months. However, as their services were not extended beyond December 31, many of them are now left without even a monthly salary and are facing severe hardship, he said.

TTV Dhinakaran said, ahead of the 2021 Assembly elections, the DMK had promised in its manifesto that the government would consider regularising the services of employees who had been working on a contract basis for more than 10 years in government departments and institutions, but the promise has not been fulfilled. The government is now permanently sending home, he alleged.

He also urged the government to immediately regularise the services of the 328 assistant professors who have been removed and fill the vacant assistant professor posts in colleges across Tamil Nadu at the earliest, in the interest of students pursuing higher education.

In another social media post, he said that guest lecturers working in government arts and science colleges across Tamil Nadu have launched a protest, pressing for a salary hike and maternity leave. Considering that students' education is being affected, the Tamil Nadu government should step forward to fulfil their demands.