Who Is Indian-Origin Mathura Sridharan? Ohio’s 12th Solicitor General Trolled Over ‘Bindi’

Mathura Sridharan, an Indian-origin lawyer, was recently appointed Ohio’s 12th Solicitor General, Attorney General Dave Yost announced. Sridharan is all set to serve as the state’s top appellate lawyer, representing Ohio in high-stakes cases before state and federal appeals courts.

Who is Mathura Sridharan?

Mathura Sridharan is facing online backlash after her recent appointment drew criticism from netizens. She also heads Ohio’s Tenth Amendment Center and, in 2023, argued before the US Supreme Court in Ohio v. EPA, challenging the Environmental Protection Agency’s “good neighbor” rule.

Before this, she worked as a law clerk 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 earned her Juris Doctor (JD) from New York University School of Law in 2018, after completing a Master’s degree in Electrical Engineering and Computer Science from MIT in 2013. She completed her Bachelor’s degrees in Electrical Engineering & Computer Science and Economics from MIT.

Sridharan is trained in Carnatic music and has performed at several cultural venues, according to reports.

Why is she facing online backlash?

The controversy began when netizens questioned her background, pointing to her bindi and implying she was not American.

Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost defended her and said, “A few commenters have asserted incorrectly that Mathura is not American. She is a United States citizen, married to a US citizen, and the child of naturalized US citizens. If her name or her complexion bothers you, the problem is not with her or her appointment.”

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