Calcutta, Aug. 6: The Presidency University students who started a gherao yesterday alleging lack of transparency in the provisional merit list for undergraduate aspirants ended up making demands for themselves today.

A group of postgraduate students, along with some third-year students, held registrar Debojyoti Konar and other officials hostage for almost 23 hours.

Apart from alleging lack of transparency, they had demanded that the counselling for undergraduate aspirants be extended by one more day.

Their argument was candidates from far-flung districts might find it difficult if the counselling was wrapped up in a day.

The authorities held the counselling today at the Government College of Engineering & Ceramic Technology and none of the candidates had any complaint.

By the end of the day, when the students lifted the gherao around 3pm, it was clear none of the original demands had been met.

The students, however, claimed the authorities have assured to look into their demand that third-year students who have written special supplementary papers be considered for admission to masters programmes under the "home student" category.

The latest unrest at Presidency highlights once again how students treat teachers and university officials by holding them to ransom over illegitimate demands.

Following a 2012 government directive, Presidency, like other state universities, can directly admit its students scoring the cut-off 60 per cent or more to postgraduate (science) courses. For arts students, the cut-off is 50 per cent.

Apart from the seats reserved for home students, the others would be filled by way of admission test.

Presidency authorities have laid out a rule saying students taking the special supplementary exam in any of the theory papers in the third year will not be considered for admission to masters under the home student category even if they meet the cut-off.

After the ordeal, registrar Konar told Metro that there were students who skip tests in the fifth and sixth semester to take the special supplementary exams within a month of the completion of the sixth semester exams.

"Since they get time to concentrate on a handful of papers, they score well and end up getting better grade point average across the six semesters," Konar said.

"A better grade means they stand a better chance in securing a berth in a masters programme. The rule attempts to curb the injustice meted out to sincere students in the process."

In 2014, more than 50 graduates had been denied direct admission despite scoring more than the cut-off because of the 60 per cent cap on the number of home students who can be allowed such entry.

Presidency authorities have already posted on the university website the names of the graduate students who are eligible for seeking admission to masters programmes under the reserved category.

The 29 students who took the special supplementary papers this year do not feature on the list.

Asked why they are fighting for students who have written special supplementary papers, Arkaprabha Mukhopadhyay, a SFI student leader on the campus, said they don't go by the authorities' explanation students skip tests intentionally.

"If someone seriously falls ill, does he have any option other than to write the special supplementary paper? You can't deny such a student the privilege of direct admission," said Mukhopadhyay, who has already got a direct promotion to MSc geology through the normal course.

Prantik Basu, a union leader from the Independents Consolidation (IC) and a second year political science student, said the same thing.

Konar said: "We have not promised anything. Everything depends on how the situation evolves."