Chief Ministers of Tamil Nadu and Kerala, M K Stalin and Pinarayi Vijayan, who participated in the centenary of the Vaikom satyagraha here on Thursday emphasised that such renaissance movements were needed to establish an egalitarian society free from repression.

Both the Chief Ministers visited the Periyar Thidal here and paid floral tributes to rationalist leader Periyar E V Ramasamy who is hailed as “Vaikom Veerar.”

The centenary event was a low-key affair due to the sudden demise of actor and founder of Desiya Murpokku Dravida Kazhagam (DMDK) Vijayakanth earlier in the day.

A book on Periyar and the 1924 Vaikom struggle besides a centenary souvenir were released on the occasion. TN Chief Minister presented a copy of the souvenir to his Kerala counterpart.

“Periyar was arrested twice during the agitation. The Vaikom protest lasted for a total of 603 days. Periyar participated in the agitation for 141 days and he was in jail for 74 days,” Stalin said while describing the struggle that paved the way for temple entry in the country.

He called for a crusade against untouchability, caste inequality, against high and low thinking. Also, male-female discrimination should be eradicated, he said, and added that efforts would be made to strive and establish an egalitarian society on the path shown by revolutionary social reformists.

Describing the Vaikom Satyagraha as a people’s movement unparalleled in Indian history, Pinarayi Vijayan said both Kerala and Tamil Nadu take pride in the Vaikom Struggle.

“When we commemorate a movement that brought different strands - social and political - together for the common good, it is imperative that we too strive to bring such different strands together to achieve the common good relevant to our times,” the Kerala CM said and cautioned against regressive thoughts and practices.

He claimed that there were attempts to divide people along religious lines and region as well.

Vijayan regretted that the Gubernatorial positions were being “misused for subverting the authorities of the elected governments of states” and that some Governors encroached upon the fields legitimately assigned to the judiciary by the constitution.

Dravidar Kazhagam president K Veeramani, TN Ministers: Duraimurugan, K N Nehru, A V Velu, M R K Panneerselvam, Thangam Thannarasu, M P Saminathan, Ma Subramanian, P K Shekharbabu, Anbil Mahesh Poiyamozhi, Chennai Corporation Mayor R Priya and senior government officials participated.