Sri Srinivasan, 48, was among the few judges interviewed by President Obama for the top judicial post, but in the end he opted to nominate judge Merrick Garland to the Supreme Court. (Reuters Photo)
Indian-Americans expressed their disappointment over Barack Obama's decision not to nominate "trailblazer" Sri Srinivasan to fill the vacancy on the Supreme Court bench but appreciated the US President for "strongly considering" the Indian-origin judge.
Mr Srinivasan, 48, was among the few judges interviewed by President Obama for the top judicial post, but in the end he opted to nominate judge Merrick Garland to the Supreme Court.
Encouraged by the fact that President Obama during his presidency nominated a record number of Indian-Americans to senior judiciary positions, community leaders from across the country were hoping that Mr Srinivasan would be the pick.
"The expectations were high and Sri was eminently qualified. The community was disappointed to say the least. This SCOTUS (Supreme Court of the United States) process could take a while during this political season so let's wait and see what happens," M R Rangaswami, a Silicon Valley-based entrepreneur and philanthropist, told PTI.
"This also indicates that Indian-Americans are not yet punching our weight. We have a long way to go where we are a significant force in the political arena," said Rangaswami, who had organised the first-ever Indian-American presidential inaugural ball after President Obama was sworn-in for the second term in 2013.