News Desk
03 August 2025, 03:21 PM IST
Sridharan’s LinkedIn profile began circulating widely online, with trolls questioning why a “non-US-origin” candidate was selected for the key legal position. The backlash included comments questioning her citizenship, religion and even her wearing of a bindi.
Mathura Sridharan
Ohio: Indian-origin attorney Mathura Sridharan has come under a wave of online vitriol after being appointed as Ohio’s 12th Solicitor General. While many celebrated her achievement, some online critics targeted her heritage, name and appearance—prompting a sharp response from Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost.
Following her promotion, Sridharan’s LinkedIn profile began circulating widely online, with trolls questioning why a “non-US-origin” candidate was selected for the key legal position. The backlash included comments questioning her citizenship, religion and even her wearing of a bindi.
Addressing the criticism, Attorney General Yost firmly defended Sridharan’s American identity and credentials. “A few commenters have asserted incorrectly that Mathura is not American,” he stated. “She is a United States citizen, married to a US citizen and the child of naturalized US citizens.”
He added pointedly: “If her name or her complexion bother you, the problem is not with her or her appointment.”
Yost praised Sridharan’s track record, highlighting her past success arguing before the US Supreme Court and her endorsements from previous Ohio Solicitors General Benjamin Flowers and Mathura Gaiser. “Mathura is brilliant… She won her argument at SCOTUS last year,” he wrote on social media. “I told her when I originally hired her I needed her to argue with me. She does… all the time!”
Despite Yost’s strong defense, some continued to question Sridharan’s “Americanness.” Remarks online included, “Is she a Christian? That’s the biggest factor that concerns me. Based on the bindi on her forehead, I worry she is not,” and “No one with the last name ‘Sridharan’ fought in the US Civil War. She’s not an American.”
Others accused her of having “foreign” loyalties or claimed her appointment symbolised a broader trend of Americans losing jobs to immigrants.
Sridharan, however, brings an impressive academic and legal background to the role. Before joining the Ohio Solicitor’s Office, she clerked for Judge Steven J Menashi on the US Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit and for the late Judge Deborah A Batts in the Southern District of New York. She earned her Juris Doctor from New York University School of Law and holds both a Master’s and a Bachelor’s degree in Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, along with a degree in Economics, from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT).
As online backlash continues, Yost’s unequivocal defense stands as a reminder of the importance of merit, citizenship and dignity in public service — beyond skin color, names or outdated notions of identity.
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