A 26-year-old Indian student, Mehul Prajapati, who studies at Wilfrid Laurier University in Canada, recently faced a storm of misinformation on social media. It all started when Prajapati shared a video on Instagram, where he suggested ways for university students to access a local food bank for groceries. However, the video was later taken down due to the controversy it stirred.
In the video, Prajapati, wearing his university sweater, shared his strategy for saving money on food, which included getting groceries for free from the food bank. This sparked criticism from some social media users who disagreed with students relying on such resources.
According to the media reports, things turned darker when false claims about Prajapati's employment surfaced online. Some suggested he held a high-paying job as a data analyst at TD Bank, which was proven false when it was revealed he had completed an internship there that ended months prior.
Despite clarification from both Prajapati and TD Bank, headlines falsely stated that Prajapati had been fired from the bank. This misinformation added fuel to the online backlash, leading to Prajapati deactivating all his social media accounts.
In response to the situation, Laurier University announced a review and offered support to Prajapati, condemning the online abuse directed at him.
According to the Money Control report, Prajapati expressed frustration over the false allegations tarnishing his reputation. His intention in the video was to inform struggling students about available resources and warned about the dangers of believing everything on the internet.
