Thiruvananthapuram | Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan on Friday hailed the contributions of 20th century saint-social reformer Sree Narayana Guru and said he was a strong anti-caste proponent and a driving force of renaissance movement in the southern state.

In a Facebook post marking the 96th death anniversary of the saint, the CM said Guru, who proclaimed that man's caste is his humanity, had laid the foundation of modern Kerala.

Noting that Guru 'darshanas' (teachings) had always questioned the caste-based feudal power centres, Vijayan said he was a person who had appealed to the lower class people to leave their traditional occupation and find jobs in new sectors to eliminate the deep-rooted casteism in the society.

Memories of Sree Narayana Guru would give strength to the state's strides to build a new Kerala based on egalitarian principles, the CM added.