Shillong, Aug. 24: The refusal to accord recognition to the Khasi language by the Sahitya Akademi and the Union home ministry threatens to snowball into a major crisis.

The Khasi Students’ Union (KSU) and the Khasi Authors’ Society have reacted sharply to the Akademi and home ministry’s arguments, terming them as “unacceptable”.

The long-pending demand of Khasi authors and scholars to recognise the language under the Eighth Schedule of the Constitution was turned down on Monday.

While the Akademi is said to have cited “financial crunch” as the reason for turning down the demand, the home ministry’s stand on the issue paints a very “uncertain future” on the inclusion of the Khasi language in the Eighth Schedule.

Sources said the Khasi language was set aside as it does not fulfil “some of the criteria” like the number of people speaking the language being “too few” and the size of the population speaking the language in Meghalaya being relatively small.

“It is shocking to know that the Sahitya Akademi has cited reason of funds constraints. It is unacceptable,” KSU president Samuel Jyrwa said”

The question on every intellectual and scholars mind was: “If Manipuri language and the languages of smaller communities like the Lepchas could get recognition in Sikkim, which is smaller in size than Meghalaya, what is wrong with us?”

The Khasi Authors’ Society, which has been heading the movement to get the Khasi language accepted as “a district official language” and as a language under the Eight Schedule, met chief minister D.D. Lapang recently and submitted a memorandum to him.

“The executive committee of the Khasi Authors’ Society will meet today to discuss the reports that have come from the Sahitya Akademi and the home ministry,” a source close to the Khasi Authors’ Society said.

“We will meet the chief minister again and take up the issue,” the source added.

Khasi scholar Hamlet Bareh Ngapkynta, a Padmashree awardee, said not recognising the Khasi language could have an adverse impact and create confusion in the minds of the people. “On account of the contribution made by Khasi literature, it is high time that the language is recognised,” he added.

S. Lamare, a Sahitya Akademi member in Shillong and a member of the Khasi Authors’ Society, was not available for comments.