Tina Dabi

Early life and education Dabi was born in Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh in 1993. Her family moved to Delhi in 2005. She is the daughter of Himali Kamble, who worked for Indian Engineering Services, and Jaswant Dabi, who worked in Indian Engineering Services; both are engineers. and then graduated in Political Science from Lady Shri Ram College for Women, Delhi.

Career In 2015, at the age of 22, Dabi took the Indian civil service exam to qualify for an Indian Administrative Services job and came in first in the nation, the first woman from the marginalized Dalit caste to do so. Her accomplishment drew attention to the details of her personal life and according to The Times of India "triggered...a conversation about caste and opportunity", including criticism of the reservation system for scheduled castes.

Criticism In 2024, a video of Dabi bowing to Satish Poonia drew attention to the relationship between civil servants and elected officials in India.

During the 2026 Republic Day celebrations, Barmer Collector Tina Dabi faced significant public backlash after a viral video showed her appearing disoriented and unsure of the proper saluting protocol. Critics on social media questioned her professional conduct and state of mind during the official ceremony, citing the incident as a lapse in the decorum expected of a senior IAS officer.

Personal life In 2018, Dabi married Athar Aamir Khan, who ranked second in CSE 2015. The couple divorced in 2021. ThePrint referred to her as "the Bollywood star of bureaucracy" because of the level of media and public interest in her personal life.