大象传媒

As India struggles with a surge in Covid-19 cases, it is also dealing with a wave of misinformation about the virus and vaccines.

Although now banned from Facebook and YouTube, self-proclaimed nutritionist Biswaroop Roy Chowdhury built his social media stardom by claiming that conventional medicine is almost entirely wrong about coronavirus.

Labelled a dangerous 鈥渜uack鈥� by his critics, Chowdhury has a track record of spreading outrageous medical falsehoods. He is opposed to all vaccines and even claims AIDS is not caused by HIV.

During the global pandemic he has gained a new audience by spreading conspiracy theories about Covid-19, which he calls 鈥渢he scandal of the millennium鈥�.

Chowdhury says 鈥� contrary to scientific evidence - that masks and lockdowns are harmful and warns that hospital treatment only increases a patient鈥檚 chances of dying.

He claims to have 鈥渃ured鈥� thousands of Covid-19 patients through diet alone and has set up a course where followers can pay to learn his methods. We challenge his bogus claims and uncover new details about the death of one of his followers.

Presenter: Mike Wendling
Reporter: Reha Kansara
Producer: Ed Main
With reporting by: Shruti Menon, 大象传媒 Reality Check, Delhi