 Ramanathan stopped practising law in 1886 to concentrate on politics and his interest religious studies and philosophy.Ramanathan was appointed to the Legislative Council of Ceylon in 1879 as the unofficial member representing Tamils, replacing his maternal uncle Muthu Coomaraswamy.In 1880 he founded the Ceylon National Association, of which he was president, to campaign for constitutional reform Whilst on a tour of Europe Ramanathan, his wife and daughter were presented to Queen Victoria and was called to the bar at the Inner Temple in 1886.