Fact Check: Haryana doctor who ate cow dung is hale and hearty, viral claim is false
A post claiming a doctor from Haryana who became famous for eating cow dung has been hospitalized with a stomach infection is viral on social media.
By Newsmeter Network Published on 16 Dec 2021 1:23 PM GMT
Hyderabad: A post claiming a doctor from Haryana who became famous for eating cow dung has been hospitalized with a stomach infection is viral on social media.
"MBBS doctor from Karnal who eat cow dung and advised others to do the same, got stomach infection and is admitted to hospital," reads the English translation of the post.
Original claim: करनाल का एमबीबीएस डॉक्टर जो दूसरों को गोबर खाने की सलाह देता था खुद गोबर खा खा कर पेट में इन्फेक्शन कर बैठा पहुंचा मेडिकल
Click here to view the post.
Fact Check:
NewsMeter found the claim to be false.
The fact check team performed a reverse image search that took us to the original photo that appeared on a GoFundMe page in 2017. According to the caption, the man in the photo is Bidhan Thapa, who died on July 10, 2017. Fundraising was started to bring his body home in Nepal from the United States.
Further, the team found an interview of Dr. Manoj Mittal on IBN24 News on 14, 2021. At 3.27 minutes, he can be heard saying that he is completely healthy and has not been hospitalized.
Also, AFP had fact-checked the same photo when it had gone viral in February 2021. Users had falsely claimed that the Ethiopian Prime Minister was critically ill in the hospital.
Therefore, the viral claim is false.
