Who Is Vijay Vishwas Pant? IAS Officer Leading Ram Mandir SIT Was Named in 2019 Cheating and Forgery FIR

Key Points

VIJAY VISHWAS PANT, the IAS officer who's heading the Special Investigation Team (SIT) probing into the Ram Mandir donation theft, was named as an accused in a 2019 cheating and forgery case. Vijay Vishwas Pant, an IAS officer of the 2004-batch, was previously deployed as a top power distribution official in western Uttar Pradesh from 2013 to 2015. In February 2019, Pant, along with 14 other officials of the Western Electricity Distribution Corporation (WEDC), were booked  under sections 420 (cheating) and 465 (forgery) of the Indian Penal Code (IPS) at the Parikshitgarh police station in Meerut, Uttar Pradesh.

The 2019 FIR Linked to the IAS Officer Vijay Vishwas Pant

A first information report (FIR) was filed by a laborer, Shivkumar Sharma, who accused the officials of deliberately altering official documents in a bid to halt his payments, and also implicated him in false police cases. Vijay Vishwas Pant was named in the FIR as he was then managing director of the WEDC. However, Pant wasn't named or accused directly in the complaint, and the laborer’s core allegations did not appear to target him directly.

Currently, Vijay Vishwas Pant is appointed as the Divisional Commissioner of Lucknow district, Uttar Pradesh. At the time of the filing of the FIR, back in 2019, he was working as District Magistrate of Kanpur.

The news of the IAS officer helming the Ram Mandir SIR and his connection with the previous fraud and forgery case was first reported by independent journalist Abhishek Upadhyay on his social media channel ‘top secret.’ 

See also: Who is Lavkush Mishra? Ram Mandir Trust Worker Arrested in Donation Theft Built a ₹25-Lakh House with ₹12,000 Monthly Salary

On July 8, 2026, Abhishek Upadhyay wrote in an X post:  “The one who is himself under investigation for fraud and forgery, is conducting the probe into the embezzlement, fraud, and forgery at Ram Mandir! So how will the Ram Mandir investigation be impartial? It will be exactly as the government dictates.”

Details of Pant’s old fraud and forgery case emerged just days after the SIT submitted its preliminary report about the alleged donation thefts happening in the Ram Mandir. The SIT’s final report is expected to be turned in by the end of this month, July 2026.

In a statement given to the new outlet The Wire, Vishwa Jyoti Rai, Deputy Superintendent of Police of Meerut, the police official who is probing into Pant’s case, stated that the inquiry into the earlier case is still ongoing. The officer further appealed to anyone that may possess information relating to this case, and requested them to approach him.

What Was the Western Electricity Distribution Corporation Case? 

Shivkumar Sharma, owner of Durga Electricals, alleged that officials of the Western Electricity Distribution Corporation (WEDC) used correction fluid to rewrite figures in official measurement books, which significantly reduced the recorded volume of work done by his company.

Sharma said his firm was contracted in September 2007 to electrify three villages under the Ambedkar Gram Vikas Yojana. Though the work was successfully completed by December 31, 2007, officials allegedly labelled his firm a “bhagoda” (absconder) to avoid verifying bills and instead demanded commissions. When he refused, they allegedly altered official records.

He further claimed that when he pushed for payment, officials falsely implicated him in an electrical accident three years later. After he filed complaints, the department lodged three counter FIRs against him, including one under the SC/ST Atrocities Act. “I was being systematically harassed,” Sharma said.

See also: Inflated Bills, 40% Commission, Fake Workers: Former Ram Mandir Engineer’s Explosive Allegations, Says His Life Was Threatened

Opposition Raise Questions About Vijay Vishwas Pant’s Role in Ram Mandir SIT

Surendra Rajput, Congress Spokesperson, Uttar Pradesh, has leveled sharp criticism at the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). Speaking at a press conference in Delhi, Rajput remarked that the BJP has chosen to appoint a person to lead the Ram Mandir SIT who himself has fraud and forgery allegations leveled against him (referring to Vijay Vishwas Pant).

“The BJP government appointed the person accused of robbery and embezzlement as the head of the SIT investigating the theft of temple offerings,” Rajput said. 

Samajwadi Party chief and former Uttar Pradesh chief minister Akhilesh Yadav, while speaking to reporters, stated: “The SIT is a cover up. And I hear that questions are being raised about the SIT itself. One of its members [Pant] is facing an FIR under (IPC) 420 (cheating). Now, tell me, such a person is going to remain in the SIT.”

Vijay Vishwas Pant is yet to comment on this matter.

(Edited by Vaishnavi Sivadasan)

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