Claim: According to a notice issued by the Ministry of Defence (MoD) on 14 May 2025, Air Vice Marshal Aurangzeb Ahmed has been terminated.
Fact: The letter, allegedly from the Ministry of Defence, is not authentic. It originated from the Indian political satire account ‘The Baingan’ and was also labelled as satire.
X user Amitabh Chaudhary (@MithilaWaala) shared a screenshot of a letter dated 14 May 2025 and attributed to Pakistan’s Ministry of Defence. The letter claimed that Air Vice Marshal Aurangzeb Ahmed has been terminated for his failure to protect the Kirana Hills nuclear facility.
The document reads:
“To
Air Vice Marshal Aurangzeb Ahmed
Pakistan Air Force Headquarters
Centre of Gravity, Islamabad
Subject: Termination of Appointment as Air Vice Marshal for failing to protect Kirana Hills Nuclear facility leading to radiation leak
Dear Air Vice Marshal Aurangzeb Ahmed,
I am directed to convey the decision of the Government of Pakistan to relieve you of your duties as Chief of the Air Staff, Pakistan Air Force, with immediate effect for failing to protect Kirana Hills, a nuclear facility centre of gravity.
This decision has been taken after careful deliberation at the highest levels of national security and defence, and in view of recent operational, strategic, and administrative lapses under your centre of gravity.
You are hereby instructed to hand over charge to the designated interim Chief of the Air Staff as notified by the Ministry of Defence. All official documentation, classified material, and strategic briefings must be duly transferred in accordance with established protocols and centre of gravity.
We trust you will extend your full cooperation during the transition process.
Sincerely,
Lt Gen(R) Muhammad Ali
Secretary, Ministry of Defence
Government of Pakistan”
Who is Aurangzeb Ahmed?
Amid the conflict between India and Pakistan, Air Vice Marshal (AVM) Aurangzeb Ahmed of the Pakistan Air Force (PAF) gained widespread admiration among Pakistani youth “for his composed demeanour” during high-stakes media briefings.
In a series of press briefings following the military conflict between India and Pakistan, AVM Ahmed was popularly perceived as articulating Pakistan’s retaliatory actions with clarity and composure. His commentary on the Indian Air Force (IAF) resonated with users on social media, which earned him public recognition and placed him in the spotlight during a time of national crisis.
Pahalgam Attack
The strikes carried out by India as part of Operation Sindoor were purportedly in response to the terror attack that took place in Pahalgam in Indian-administered Kashmir on 22 April 2025, which killed 26 people, mostly tourists. India has blamed the attacks on Pakistan, whereas Pakistan has denied any involvement and demanded a neutral investigation.
The Resistance Front – a group that Indian officials maintain is a proxy front for the Pakistan-based militant group Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) – initially claimed responsibility for that attack but later retracted its statement.
India attacks Pakistani military bases
According to Pakistan Army spokesperson Lt Gen Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry, India attacked different Pakistan Air Force (PAF) airbases, including Nur Khan in Chaklala, Rawalpindi, Murid in Chakwal, and Rafiqui, formerly known as Shorkot, in Jhang. Chaudhry said the Pakistani military intercepted a “majority” of India’s missiles and “successfully prevent[ed] the desired objectives of India”.
The missiles that did make it inside the Pakistani territory have “not been able to cause any damage” to PAF’s flying assets, Chaudhry maintained. The PAF was able to trace “where they [Indian missiles] were initiated and what was targeted” through electronic signatures, he added.
Pakistan Army, Chaudhry said, was “vigilant and thwarting all these cowardly acts of aggression by Indians”.
Operation Bunyan-um-Marsoos
On 10 May, the Pakistan Army announced a counterattack against India at 4:38 am — named “Operation Bunyan-um-Marsoos”, which is an Arabic phrase that translates to “steel wall”. They added that the action was “part of the military conflict Marka-e-Haq”.
The military’s media wing, the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), said Pakistan targeted “26x military targets as well as facilities that were used to target Pakistani citizens and those enterprises that were responsible for fomenting terrorism in Pakistan”.
The targeted airbases included those at “Suratgarh, Sirsa, Bhuj, Naliya, Adampur, Bhatinda, Barnala, Halwara, Awantipura, Srinagar, Jammu, Udhampur, Mamun, Ambala, and Pathankot”, the ISPR said, adding that “[the] BrahMos storage facilities at Beas and Nagrota were also destroyed.”
Pakistan claimed to have hit “multiple targets in India and India-administered Kashmir”, CNN reported. “The Pakistan military said that, in an ‘eye for eye’ retaliation, they targeted the Indian air bases that were used to launch missiles against Pakistan,” the report added.
On the other hand, the Indian Defence Ministry said Pakistani drones were “sighted at 26 locations along the International Border and LoC with Pakistan” and that “these include suspected armed drones”.
India’s missile attacks and Pakistan’s response mark “the most significant escalation so far in the brewing conflict between the two nuclear-armed neighbours”, according to The Guardian.
Fact or Fiction?
Soch Fact Check found the claim dubious after noticing that the top right corner of the letter included the label “Baingan | Satire.” However, in some of the posts, this part was cropped out, making the letter appear authentic. We traced the origin of the post and discovered it was shared (archive) by the X account @TheBaingan. It was captioned: “🚨 #BREAKING: Pakistan Govt fires Air Vice Marshal Aurangzeb Ahmed for failing to protect Kirana Hills Nuclear facility.”
The account’s bio stated, “Political satire.” The website linked in the account’s bio features content entirely in Hindi, indicating that it is an Indian political satire platform.
A review of the account’s recent posts revealed similar satirical content aimed at Pakistan, including a fake letter (archive) which claimed that the Pakistani Defence Ministry was hiring video editors, graphic designers, and online gamers.
To further verify the claim, Soch Fact Check reviewed the official websites of the Ministry of Defence and the Pakistan Air Force but did not find any press releases or announcements supporting the claim.
We also conducted a keyword search to see if any credible news outlets had reported on the alleged dismissal, but did not find any relevant coverage.
Therefore, Soch Fact Check concludes that the viral letter being circulated online is satirical.
Virality
The letter was shared here (archive) on Facebook.
On X, it was shared here, here, here, here, and here. Archived here, here, here, here, and here.
It was shared here (archive) on Instagram.
On Threads, it was shared here (archive).
Conclusion: A viral letter claiming that Air Vice Marshal Aurangzeb Ahmed has been fired is not authentic. The letter originated from ‘The Baingan’, an Indian political satire account.
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Background image in cover photo: The Express Tribune
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