Telangana Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao, his Andhra Pradesh counterpart Y S Jagan Mohan Reddy, and Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan condoled the death of social activist Swami Agnivesh on Friday.
Expressing his shock over the passing away of Swami Agnivesh, CM KCR recalled how he had given his support to the Telangana statehood movement right from the beginning.
KCR also recalled that Agnivesh had participated in meetings, conferences and programmes relating to the separate Telangana statehood movement. The CM conveyed his condolences to the members of Agnivesh's family.
Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Y S Jagan Mohan Reddy also expressed grief over the demise of Agnivesh. In his condolence message, the Chief Minister said Agnivesh will be remembered for his crusade against bonded labour and for the unrelenting fight against social evils.
CM Jagan said Agnivesh had inspired many people to take up social work.
Kerala CM Pinarayi Vijayan recalled Swami Agnivesh as a man who devoted his lifetime to the cause of human rights, social justice and secularism.
“He was a man who dedicated his life to end the social and economic atrocities in society. Swami Agnivesh, who entered spirituality thought the Arya Samaj and from there, entered the social reformation movement, first got national attention for his fight to end bonded labour in agriculture. His was a life spent protesting on the streets against Sati and other forms of discrimination against women,” Pinarayi said in a statement.
He fought a sacrificial fight to address the social needs of the oppressed and the abuses and to bring them to the society’s mainstream, Pinarayi said.
“There were many attacks from communal forces against him as he had always stood for religious harmony and community alliance. He tirelessly participated in the fight against communalism his whole life. He always dressed entirely in saffron and saw the colour as the colour of sacrifice. Even when participating in the United Nations conferences, he raised the issue of uplifting the marginalised people,” the statement added.
CM Pinarayi Vijayan said the death of Swami Agnivesh is an irreplaceable loss to Indian secularism, the human rights protection movement, social renaissance initiatives and progressive politics in India.