He was always interested in the
Dravidian cause and was involved in the Dravidian movement from his student life. A staunch supporter and follower of Periyar and his ideology, Mr.Ramalingam joined the AIADMK and became a full-time activist. His mentor
Dr.M.G.Ramachandran gave him an opportunity to represent the Nilgiri's parliamentary constitution in the year 1977, and he was a member of the 6th Lok Sabha. In the year 1996 he became the Chairman for
Mettupalayam Municipality and was influential in bringing and completing a water scheme that proved quite successful among many other development projects. He died of a lung ailment on 17 January 2013. == References ==