Pakistan defence minister Khawaja Asif's AI post on Marilyn Monroe sparks propriety debate

Pakistan Defense Minister Khawaja Asif has come under fire for sharing an AI-generated puzzle featuring Marilyn Monroe on X (formerly Twitter).

Updated on: Oct 15, 2026, 14:34:34 IST

By Sanya Jain

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Pakistan Defense Minister Khawaja Asif has come under fire for sharing an AI-generated puzzle featuring Marilyn Monroe on X (formerly Twitter). Social media users questioned the propriety of a senior minister sharing ‘frivolous’ posts at a time when Pakistan is facing internal security challenges on multiple fronts.

Pakistan Defense Minister Khawaja Asif faced backlash for sharing an AI-generated image of Marilyn Monroe on X.

What did the image show?

Khawaja Asif, 77, shared an AI-generated puzzle on X earlier this week. The puzzle challenged users to find the anachronistic element in an AI image of Hollywood actress Marilyn Monroe set in 1956.

The AI image, set in 1956, shows Monroe wearing a pair of shorts and a crop top. The Hollywood icon was also seen wearing a modern smartwatch, completely at odds with the vintage setting.

What did the Pakistani Defence Minister write?

Asif reposted the puzzle with a single word and an emoji. “Watch,” he wrote, adding a smiley face emoji at the end.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by ansar (@_ansar_a)

Why did the post generate backlash?

The X post drew condemnation from Pakistani viewers who wondered why the country’s defence minister was sharing and solving AI puzzles on X.

“Pakistan is drowning in economic, political, and security crises, with KP on the brink of imploding from within. In the meantime, its Defence Minister, Khawaja Asif is busy boosting his newly created fake "American woman" burner account,” wrote one X user.

“Looks like Pakistani Defence Minister Khawaja Muhammad Asif forgot to switch accounts,” another person theorised.

“War shor to hoti rahegi, watching Marilyn Monroe is important,” a user quipped on Instagram.

An overwhelming majority of viewers found the post to be unprofessional. The post also drew backlash for promoting “AI slop” — a newly-coined term for low-quality, mass-produced digital content created using generative artificial intelligence.

(Also read: 'Don't go back like this': Khawaja Asif's ‘threat-like’ gesture to Afghan journalist draws backlash | Video)

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Sanya Jain
Sanya Jain is an Assistant Editor with Hindustan Times Digital. She has nearly a decade of experience in covering offbeat stories that speak to the everyday experience -- from viral videos to human interest copies that spark a conversation. Her interests stretch across business, pop culture, social media trends, entertainment and global affairs. Before joining Hindustan Times, Sanya spent two years with Moneycontrol and five years with NDTV. She holds an undergraduate degree in English literature from St Stephen’s College, Delhi, and a master’s in journalism from the Xavier Institute of Communications, Mumbai. Sanya has a sharp eye for spotting emerging trends and finding newsworthy angles in viral content. She writes about a wide range of topics, from business leaders and social issues to everyday people and internet trends. She enjoys speaking to content creators, newsmakers and entrepreneurs and turning their experiences and stories into engaging, relatable articles.Read More

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