Baba ka Dhaba: Police probe ‘misappropriation’ of donations

Delhi Police is investigating the alleged misappropriation of donation funds for Malviya Nagar-based ‘Baba ka Dhaba’ after the owner of the eatery filed a complaint against Instagram influencer Gaurav Wasan for misappropriation of funds.

Kanta Prasad, 80, had shot to fame after a video of him tearfully recounting the desperation of the months since the lockdown was shared widely across social media platforms recently.

Prasad’s plight had come to light when Gaurav Wasan captured the eatery owner breaking down as he talked about his struggles in a video shared on the YouTuber’s social media account. Soon, the video went viral and hundreds of people flocked at the dhaba taking selfies with the old man and offering him monetary help.

“We have received a complaint and are probing the matter. We will register an FIR after preliminary inquiry and only if the allegations are found true,” said DCP South Atul Thakur.

In his complaint to police, Prasad said Wasan shot his video and posted it online, asking the public on social media to donate money to the eatery owner. He further alleged that Wasan “intentionally and deliberately shared only his and his family/friends bank details and mobile numbers with the donors and collected huge amount of donations through different mode of payments—bank account/wallets without providing any information to the complainant.”

Wasan has shared his bank statement after people accused him of online scam. “Transparency link verified by bank. Anybody who donated can go and verify and re-verify. Thank you for supporting,” he wrote.

WITH AGENCY INPUTS