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Prākrit commanded the same respect as Sanskrit classic:s; and they were studied and commented upon with the same zeal. A. famous collection of Muktakas in Sanskrit, Āryāsaptaśati of Govardhanācārya was inspired by and composed in imitation of the. Gāthāsaptaśati.
This is just to show the inherently non-sectarian character of Prākrit. But there is another factor, which adds to its importance in modern times. All the new Indo-Aryan languages are derived from Sanskrit through Präkrit and its later form Apabhramśa. The history of form or meaning of most of NIA words can hardly be traced without reference to Prākrit and Apabhramśa. A large number of words is found only in Präkrit, and some grammatical peculiarities could be explained only with the help of Prūkrit usage. A historical study of any of the Indo-Aryan languages cannot be undertaken without a proper study of the Prākrits, and a workable knowledge of Prākrits is expected of any serious student of these modern languages. As a person who has edited and translated Sanskrit, Prākrit and Old Gujarāti texts I would like to emphasise the fact that the study of Sanskrit is incomplete without Prākrit, but a study of NIA languages especially in their older forms would be ridiculous without proper equipment in Präkrit.
It goes without saying that the progress of the study of an old language or literature like Prākrit depends entirely on the critical editions of texts and their accessories. So far as Pāli is concerned, the entire Canon is published on a uniform plan by the Pali Text Society. Though the whole of the Jaina Canon or more precisely the Svetämbara or Ardha-Māgadhi Canon-has been published in India in more than one edition, partly or in entirety, the number of the texts critically edited is comparatively small. A large number of texts were published in a sporadic manner, and they were not easily available to scholars in India and abroad. That was a definitc handicap to Prākrit and Jaina studies.
