Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Sunday condoled the death of South Africa's Nobel Peace Prize-winning activist Archbishop Desmond Tutu and said such great heroes of social justice will always be a "source of inspiration to all of us across the world".

Tutu, who fought for racial justice and LGBT rights and was a retired Anglican Archbishop of Cape Town, died at the age of 90.

"My condolences on the passing of Archbishop Desmond Tutu. He was a champion of the anti-apartheid movement and a Gandhian," Rahul Gandhi tweeted.

"Such great heroes of social justice will always be a source of inspiration to all of us across the world," the former Congress chief said.