Students should stay away from gherao, education minister Partha Chatterjee said on the sidelines of a programme at Asutosh College on Sunday.

"The court has banned gherao. So we are very much against this practice, which is illegal. Students must stay away from gherao. They should rather hold dialogue with the authorities concerned about their demands," Chatterjee said.

Calcutta University's interim vice-chancellor Ashutosh Ghosh and his predecessor Sugata Marjit both had spoken out against gherao.

While Marjit had called for a ban on gherao on his last day as VC on Thursday, Ghosh pointed out soon after taking over the reins the day after that bright students would shun a university if gherao and other acts of indiscipline were rampant on its campus.

Chatterjee on Sunday took on student unions indirectly, reminding them that they should concentrate on holding academic conventions and cultural programmes. "They should help the authorities to ensure that admissions are held only on the basis of merit," Chatterjee said.

Since Mamata Banerjee came to power in May 2011, Trinamul Chhatra Parishad has often been accused of being involved in corrupt practices related to admission. Leaders of the student wing of the ruling party have often been accused of getting students admitted through the back-door.

The minister also expressed concern over the lack of attendance by students. "These days students protest even if the authorities take action against them for staying away from classes. We won't tolerate this," he said.

He added the government was mulling a code of conduct for students, teachers and non-teaching staff. "We are holding talks on the code of conduct."

Chatterjee, an alumnus of Asutosh College, visited the institution to attend a programme marking the end of its centenary celebrations. The college has repeatedly witnessed gherao of the principal and other teachers by students, mostly backed by Trinamul Chhatra Parishad, over the past few years.

Speaking at the programme, the minister said the government was planning to introduce digital mark sheets at colleges and universities to ensure transparency.

"Although complaints of forgery in mark sheets are few and far between in our state, we still want to introduce complete transparency," Chatterjee said.