Is "Yeh kaun hai?" correct?
A strange object is on the table. Tanya asks "yeh kaun hai?" (who is this?), trying to find out what the object is. Her friend says "kaun" is the wrong word here. Who is right?
Who do you think is right? Pick one.
The answer: Her friend is right, it should be "yeh kya hai?"
Why
Tanya's intent — finding out what's on the table — is completely reasonable. But Hindi splits 'कौन' and 'क्या' the same way as 'कोई'/'कुछ': 'कौन' asks about PEOPLE ('यह कौन है?' — who is this), and 'क्या' asks about THINGS ('यह क्या है?' — what is this). The object on the table isn't a person, so 'क्या' is correct — asking 'यह कौन है?' makes it sound as though a person is sitting there. Test it: pointing at a new guest, 'यह कौन है?' sounds right (a person); pointing at a toy and asking the same thing sounds strange. Her friend is right: 'कौन' for people, 'क्या' for things — for the object on the table, 'यह क्या है?' is correct.
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