Caste of AP's SEC Justice Kanagaraj among top searches on Google

Vijayawada : In yet another example of how deeply entrenched caste is in the psyche of both the Telugu speaking states, minutes after his appointment caste of Justice V. Kanagaraj was searched. He was appointed the state election commissioner (SEC) of Andhra Pradesh by the YSRCP government on Friday.

The phrase ‘justice Kanagaraj caste’ promptly appears as a search suggestion as soon as one types justice Kanagaraj in the Google search bar. Digging deeper through Google Trends, it was found ‘justice Kanagaraj caste’ was a highly-searched term. It peaked post his appointment as the SEC of AP from 11th April, 2020.

Though some reports say V. Kanagaraj is a Brahmin, many netizens are searching for his caste. Many seem to believe he might belong to a community favoured by the incumbent government.

It may be recalled caste of ace shuttler, P.V. Sindhu, who won millions of hearts after she clinched a silver medal in the 2016 Olympics, was searched on Google.

D. Sridhar, a netizen said despite claims to the contrary, ones caste plays a pivotal role in appointments in the Telugu speaking states. It doesn’t come as a surprise then that one’s hard-work, dedication to work become secondary to his/her caste.

Retired Madras HC Judge Justice V Kanagraj is new SEC of Andhra Pradesh after Nimmagadda Ramesh Kumar was ousted

Former Judge of Madras High Court Justice V Kanagaraj has been appointed as Andhra Pradesh State Election Commissioner (SEC) a day after Andhra Pradesh government ousted N Ramesh Kumar through a special ordinance.

The 75- year-old Kanagaraj is a Law graduate from Madras Law College of Madras University in 1972. He was enrolled as a member of Madras Bar Council in January 1973.

V Kanagaraj emerged the most successful lawyer for over two decades before he was appointed as Judge of Madras High Court in February 1997. As a judge, he delivered landmark judgments. He had decided over 69, 000 cases as a judge.

On Friday Governor Biswabhusan Harichandan approved the Andhra Pradesh Panchayat Raj (Second Amendment) Ordinance to change the tenure, eligibility, and method of appointment of the State Election Commissioner (SEC).