Indian nominated as trial court judge in Massachusetts

New York, Dec 31: An Indian-American has been nominated as a trial court judge in Massachusetts.

Sabita Singh, who is from Somerville in the state, was nominatedby Governor Mitt Romney to the District Circuit Court of Massachusetts.

She is among other four people from the minority community, including two other women who had been nominated for the job.

Ms Singh has hitherto been special counsel for criminal rightsenforcement in the federal prosecutor's office in Boston. The newnominees are highly qualified with a demonstrated commitment to publicservice, according to a statement issued by the governor's office.

''I am particularly pleased that three of the four nominees areminority women because of the special effort we have made to increasediversity on the Bench,'' Governor Romney said.

Ms Singh, who is the lone South Asian judge in Massachusetts, saidin a recent newspaper interview that she would be keenly involved withthe community.

''I'll be an associate justice of the District Court and assignedto a circuit, which means I'll travel from court to court, so anythingcan happen,'' she told the Boston Metro daily.

''What I'm looking forward to is being involved with the community. I really love our system and have an appreciation for it.

I would like to be able to see others have the same experiencewith it.'' Members of the Governor's Council approved the nominees tothe court - usually a formality.

Born at a village in Bihar, she along with her family migrated tothe United States at an early age. She earned her undergraduate degreeat the Penn State University. She also studied at the Boston UniversityLaw School.

In recent months, the governor drew criticism for not namingadequate women or minorities to the Bench. The Women's Bar Associationof Massachusetts criticised the governor last year on this score.

The Governor, who is a Republican, is expected to run for the presidency in 2008.

UNI