Taking exception to the panel's conclusion, litterateur and linguist Dr Pudussery Ramachandran alleged that the decision was influenced more by the political agenda of some committee members rather historical and linguistic criteria.
Kerala has been pressing for classical tag for Malayalam for quite sometime as it is the only south Indian language which does not have the status.
The previous LDF government had stepped up efforts for getting Malayalam elevated to the higher rank and a scholarly panel drew up a comprehensive report citing the antiquity and tradition of the language spoken by Keralites.
Ramachandran, who headed the committee, told PTI that the move to deny classical status was the result of a "conspiracy" of the so-called experts from other states.
He said the present UDF government appeared to be lacking in determination to expose and resist the vested interests who had worked to deny the honour to Malayalam.
"The report which we submitted to the Union government claiming the status, had all scientific details proving the antiquity of Malayalam," Ramachandran said.
"The governments in other states had shown determination to ensure that their languages had been granted classical status, which our government is lacking in," he said. (More)
