Sanjay Kothari is a former Central Vigilance Commissioner (CVC) who previously worked as secretary to former President Ram Nath Kovind from August 8, 2017 to April 24, 2020. The retired 1978-batch Haryana-cadre IAS officer served as CVC from April 25, 2020 to June 23, 2021. During his career in the IAS, Kothari served in various capacities including as the Secretary in the Department of Personnel & Training at the Centre, and in his cadre. Kothari has also served in the Ministry of Tourism at the Centre, and in the Department of Tourism of the Haryana government. In Haryana, Kothari variously served as SDO, CEO and Deputy Commissioner during his posting at district level. In the Haryana government, he served at various levels including as additional director (industries/khadi & village industries) and managing director at Department of Tourism and Agriculture Department. Kothari has written several articles on tourism, good governance, and long-term perspective planning for towns. He has also written a book — Good Governance Initiatives and Reforms — which was published in 2007. One of his articles on administrative reforms was a piece on the Indian Administrative Service (IAS). The article, titled 'Has Something Gone Wrong with IAS', was published in 2001, in The Administrator, a publication of Lal Bahadur Shastri National Academy of Administration, Mussoorie. Kothari holds a Master’s Degree in Physics with a Gold Medal and has a Masters in Business Administration from the UK.
