Raja Rajeswari becomes New York’s first Indian American judge

Indian born Raja Rajeswari, who gone to United States when she was 16, has become the first person of Indian descent to be named as a criminal court judge in New York City. The Chennai born girl, Rajeswari, who is 43 years old, is an assistant district attorney at the Richmond County District Attorney’s office. She was nominated to the bench by Mayor Bill de Blasio. For many, this is a very exciting nomination and appointment, as it will allow another perspective to be present in the legal system that was missing for so long.

Raja Rajeswari has worked at the district attorney’s office for 16 years. She has been the deputy chief of the Special Victims Unit for more than four years. Currently, there are two male judges of Indian descent in civil court settings. They are Jaya Madhavan on the New York City Housing Court in Bronx County, and Anil C. Singh of New York County Supreme Court, 1st District.

Many people who are looking for help and inspiration to get into Law from Rajeswari’s background will likely see this appointment as inspirational and as a sign of the changing times. There was a point where it seemed unlikely that an appointment like this would ever happen. Now, however, the legal system has become much more open to people of all ethnicities and backgrounds than it was even a decade ago.

Rajeswari hopes to use her new position to improve the judicial system by encouraging interpreters to have more access to aid immigrants. Apart from her legal career, Rajeshwari is also an expert in Bharat Natyam and Kucchipudi. She perform at Indian events and temples with her troupe from the Padmalaya Dance Academy. Sucha varied background will give her an amazing insight into those people she intends to help in this next stage of her career.


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