22/05/2026
Remembering Dr. Payal Tadvi
On May 22 2019, Dr. Payal Tadvi, a second-year medical student from the Tadvi Bhil (scheduled tribe community), was institutionally murdered by this Brahmanical structure. She was a medical practitioner at BYL Nair Hospital. Her casteist colleagues were harassing and humiliating her by using casteist slurs, while the administration was completely negligent, which led to her death. The institutional murder of Payal is yet another example that exposes the discriminatory nature of Higher Educational spaces against Dalit Bahujan & Tribal students. Caste is neither a myth nor a phenomenon limited to mere villages. It is still omnipresent, including modern educational spaces like Central Universities, IITs, and Medical Colleges in its most toxic form. While the Caste structure has devised its own mechanism in the name of "Merit" to deny entry to Dalit Bahujan and Tribal students, the marginalised students who nevertheless break caste barriers and enter such spaces are branded as "Quota students", harassed, humiliated and killed by these spaces. This is nothing but an outright ploy against marginalised sections, restraining them from accessing education. The institutional murders of revolutionaries, especially the Dalit Bahujan and Tribal women, who challenged Caste and Patriarchy in these spaces speak volumes of exclusion and discrimination against those who aspired for their self-respect and dignified life through education. At this time, we are also inspired by the self-respect struggle taken forward by Payal's parents, Abeda and Salim Tadvi, to ensure that justice is served for their daughter. However, like most of the atrocity cases in this country, we are witnessing an atrocious delay of justice, which is highly condemnable. On the death anniversary of Dr. Payal Tadvi, ASA salutes and commemorates all those revolutionaries who struggled for equality and dignity. We would firmly stand on our ground, resisting any such discrimination.