‘Traffic’ Ramaswamy — The one man PIL army, no more

He was reprimanded and fined several times by the Madras High court for filing frivolous PILs and wasting court’s time.

K.R. Ramaswamy, also popularly called ‘Traffic’ Ramaswamy, earned more enemies than friends during his career as an activist. The social activist, who passed away at the Government Rajiv Gandhi Hospital, was at one point disassociated by his family after they received several threatening calls and abuses. He started his activism by helping regulate the chaotic traffic in and around Parrys Corner and so was nicknamed ‘Traffic’ Ramaswamy by the locals. Initially, he was hailed by the government officials for his works but later became a thorn in the flesh for various government departments, particularly the City Police with whom he had several run-ins on subjects affecting the life of the commoners.