Ayyankali's struggle to bring the marginalised Dalit communities to the mainstream of society and win them the rights for education, walking in public spaces, and just wages are golden chapters in Kerala's history, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan said in his tribute on Ayyankali's 159th birth anniversary on Sunday. The historic 'villu vandi' and 'kallu maala' protests angered the feudal lords. The struggle of farm labourers he led was the first such protest in the history of the country's labour struggles, said Mr. Vijayan in his Facebook post.
The Scheduled Caste Development Department organised an event in the capital on Sunday to mark Ayyankali's birth anniversary. Minister for Welfare of Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes and Backward Classes K. Radhakrishnan, General Education Minister V. Sivankutty, Food and Civil Supplies Minister G.R. Anil, V.K. Prasanth MLA and Thiruvananthapuram Mayor Arya Rajendran offered floral tributes at the Ayyankali statue in Vellayambalam.
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