Old video of Patanjali’s Balkrishna in hospital viral amid Ramdev’s remarks against allopathy

A video that shows Patanjali Ayurveda chairman Acharya Balkrishna lying on a hospital bed is being circulated widely on social media. Baba Ramdev also appears towards the end of the clip. One Sonu Jangra shared the footage on Twitter, where it garnered 3,700 views as of this writing. (Archive link)

पंतजलि के बालकृष्ण की तबियत बिगड़ी #बाबा_रामदेव सीधे हॉस्पिटल लेकर गए ना ही पंतजलि का कोई भी प्रोडक्ट दिया जब तो बोल रहे थे हवा से ऑक्सीजन खींचो ओर आज ऑक्सीजन पहले लगा दी है कल तक तो रामदेव डॉक्टर्स को टर-टर बोल रहा था आज डॉक्टर्स में उनको जीवनदान दिख रहा है
पूरा वीडियो देखें 👇 pic.twitter.com/8XSpEjS840

— Sonu Jangra INC 🇮🇳🙏 (@SonuJangraINC01) May 27, 2021

Baba Ramdev has been under fire from the medical fraternity for his objectionable remarks about allopathy. Doctors across the country have called for a boycott of the yoga guru and Patanjali. The visuals of Balkrishna admitted to a hospital have gone viral in the midst of these developments.

Several Twitter users shared the video as recent. It has also been circulated on Facebook.

We have received a number of requests on the Alt News official mobile app (Android, iOS) and WhatsApp helpline number (+91 7600 11160) to verify the viral video.

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Fact-check

First off, we noticed that none of the individuals seen here, including the doctors, are wearing a mask. The absence of masks inside a hospital during the middle of the second wave of the coronavirus pandemic raises doubts over the clip’s recency.

A keyword search led us to a Facebook post by media outlet One India Hindi where this video was shared. It stated that an old video of Acharya Balkrishna has gone viral following the flurry of media attention around Ramdev’s remarks against allopathy. The visuals were actually taken when he was admitted to AIIMS due to a sudden deterioration in his health.

A subsequent keyword search on Facebook revealed that the video had been posted to the social networking site in August 2019 (1, 2, 3). It had also been shared on Twitter around that time.

देशवासियों को आयुर्वेद के फायदे बताकर खुद अरबपति बन गया = बालकृष्ण ”
अपने पर आई तो AIIMS पहुँच गया !
बुलाओ इसे चौराहे पर …… गौमूत्र वैज्ञानिक को ! pic.twitter.com/t5NV7oyd67

— Archana Singh (@BPPDELNP) August 26, 2019

A Kanak News story dated August 23, 2019, carried a statement by Ramdev on the condition of his close aide. Balkrishna suddenly took ill within 15 minutes of consuming a holy offering at a Janmashtami function. He was taken to Bhumanand Hospital after he fell unconscious. He was later shifted to AIIMS Rishikesh where his health improved considerably.

Dainik Jagran had also covered the Patanjali CEO’s sudden decline in health.

Therefore, an old video of Balkrishna was falsely shared as recent amid the ongoing tussle between Patanjali and the Indian Medical Association.