Who is Mathura Sridharan? Indian-origin lawyer who became Ohio’s 12th solicitor general and is trolled over ‘bindi’

One social media post read, “Is she a Christian? That’s the biggest factor that concerns me. Based on the bindi on her forehead, I worry she is not. That absolutely should matter to us when choosing our leaders.”

Another comment stated, “She’s Indian. They all have a loyalty first to other Indians. horrible pick. Totally un-American. The GOP is pathetic.”

“Why would you select someone who isn’t an American for such an important role?,” asked another X user. “Nothing says “Ohioan” like a dot right on the forehead,” said one person.

Ohio Attorney General backs Mathura Sridharan

Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost came out in Sridharan’s support, saying, “A few commenters have asserted incorrectly that Mathura is not American.”

Yost clarified that Sridharan is a United States citizen, married to a US citizen, and the child of naturalised US citizens.

“If her name or her complexion bother you, the problem is not with her or her appointment,” he wrote in a social medi post.

Who is Mathura Sridharan?

Dave Yost called Mathura ‘brilliant’ and said she won her argument at SCOTUS last year. “Both the SGs she worked under (Flowers & Gaiser) recommended her,” he added.

According to her profile shared by the Federalist Society, Mathura Sridharan served as the Deputy Solicitor General in Ohio’s Office of the Solicitor General.

Most recently, Mathura argued before the United States Supreme Court in Ohio v. EPA, representing several States in a challenge to the Environmental Protection Agency’s good neighbour rule, which regulates the interstate transport of air pollution.

Before joining the Ohio Solicitor’s Office, Mathura clerked for Judge Steven J. Menashi of the US Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit and Judge Deborah A. Batts of the US District Court for the Southern District of New York.

She holds a Juris Doctor from New York University School of Law, a Master’s Degree in Electrical Engineering & Computer Science from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and a Bachelor’s Degree in Economics and Electrical Engineering & Computer Science from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.