Suddenly, the otherwise peaceful campus is buzzing with speculation following the revelation that relief funds -- collected by National Service Scheme volunteers from various colleges affiliated to SGU five years ago -- never reached the victims.

The five-year-old issue has come into the spotlight again following the change of guard at the university. With Registrar V B Yadav's term coming to an end, aspirants to the post are coming to the fore. Among them is Dilip Shah, who was NSS coordinator at the time of the collection of the funds.

The NSS unit raised as much as Rs 2,34,471 from various colleges in 1993; the collection had become easier because the then vice-chancellor B A Parikh had written to respective colleges to donate to the cause. No one is sure whether this amount includes cash collected during a rally taken out for the purpose, as also non-university donations.

In October 1993, the NSS opened an account with the Union Bank of India and the relief money was transferred to a fixed deposit a couple of years later. While the money is still safe -- the FD was renewed till July 14, 1998 and the amount has swelled to about Rs 2.75 lakh -- accusing fingers are being pointed to personnel in charge of the NSS at that time over their intentions.

After the funds came under investigation -- a government audit revealed certain discrepancies in funds management; for instance, though the expenditure incurred on raising the money has been stated, there was no mention of the amount raised -- the NSS authorities reportedly said that the money would not be sent to Latur, but would be spent on students from the quake-struck region when they took admission to SGU.

The explanation offered for the sudden change of stance was that the NSS-raised funds would not make any difference to Latur, which was receiving help and money from all over the world. However, the noble intentions were neither advertised locally nor intimated to the Marathwada University, which could have found takers for the SGU offer.

Little wonder, then, that the money has lain idle all these years: SGU has rarely attracted students from that part of Maharashtra.

While none of these facts are new, what is is Syndicate member Girish Rana's letter to Governor Anshuman Singh -- also the chancellor of the university -- alleging that ``lakhs of rupees have been misappropriated'' and demanding a judicial inquiry and action against the guilty.

``Regular accounts (of the monies) were not submitted; now there is a deficit of Rs 2 crores'', Rana alleged in the letter, a copy of which was also faxed to Minister of State for Education Anandiben Patel.

When asked about it, acting Vice-Chancellor R N Shelat told Express Newsline, ``The money is safe, but I'm not aware why the money was not used for the purpose it was collected''.

Though Registrar V B Yadav said the fund was to be spent on fees, books and hostel accommodation for Latur students, he admitted that ``the decision was never made public''. He also agreed that there weren't too many Latur students seeking admission in SGU either.