The protest in progress outside the Madras IIT.
Around 200 people were detained after the students' wing of the DMK and some other groups held a protest in Chennai today against the derecognition of a student association at the Indian Institute of Technology, Madras.
The protest was held outside the IIT building, located in south Chennai.
Last week, IIT Madras temporarily derecognised the Ambedkar Periyar Study Circle - a group of around 20 students -- for allegedly violating of guidelines of the institute. The institute's Director, K Ramamurthy, said the group had been using IIT's name without permission.
But students claim they've been targeted for criticising Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the Centre's policies.
The controversy has even reached the Centre with the Congress accusing Human Resources Development minister Smriti Irani of playing a role in the ban and bullying academic institutions.
Ms Irani has emphatically denied it, saying the IITs are autonomous institutes.
Sources said the IIT had received a note from the HRD ministry, which mentioned an anonymous letter accusing the students' body of "creating hatred among students in the name of caste" and trying to "create hatred against the honourable Prime Minister and the Hindus."
The anonymous letter also enclosed a pamphlet of the study circle highlighting a speech by academician R Vivekananda Gopal which was critical of the Narendra Modi government.