**Social media users have struck gold in Minister of Energy Hammad Azhar's challenge to prominent journalist and prime time host Shahzeb Khanzada on debating Pakistan’s liquefied natural gas (LNG) and gas issues to be “moderated by a neutral anchor". **

“Let the ppl see the facts without persistent interrupting, volume controls, teleprompters etc,” the minister tweeted on Friday.

The tweet has since gone viral but not for reasons Azhar expected. With over 15,000 likes in a little over 24 hours, it has also been retweeted close to 4,000 times, with Twitterati having a field day.

One user sarcastically told him to “focus on the gas that lights up the stove, as the that created by debate doesn’t heat water.”

Another made rather unflattering comparisons and questioned the minister's maturity.

Veteran journalist Abbas Nasir had a hearty laugh, too.

"Bhai, proof of the pudding is in the eating. No gas=severe incompetence. Nothing to debate," he tweeted.

While most people trolled the minister, a few came to his defence as well, led by what many have referred to Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf's troll army.

PM's special aide Dr Shahbaz Gill shared a poll with the premise that it was journalist Shahzeb Khanzada who was refusing to have the debate.

Other verified accounts of PTI leaders followed the cue, including the focal person to the Punjab chief minister, Azhar Mashwani, who accused Khanzada of misleading the public.

There were also those who considered it a ratings issue.

Some questioned the journalist's ability as well.

But the most hilarious interludes were as Twitter went into overdrive to identify a neutral moderator.

Quite a few had suggestions, including a user having the handle @kuchnhihotayar.

It is pertinent to mention here that the National Electric Power Regulatory Authority (Nepra) published a report last month (The State of Industrial Report 2021). It stated that Pakistan’s power sector’s performance isn’t up to mark. Shahzeb Khanzada used the report as reference in his TV show and questioned the government about the delay in the purchase of LNG.

The minister had responded to the anchor’s question on Twitter where he said, “The following misreporting is the result of a lack of knowledge.”

A few days later Azhar made an appearance of Khanzada’s show where things got a little heated. Discussing the Nepra report, the two spoke over one another and the show ended abruptly.

Since then, the two have had several terse exchanges on social media.