In a debate moderated by TIMES NOW's Editor-in-Chief Arnab Goswami, panelists -- Sushant Sareen, Consultant, Pak Project, IDSA; Maj Gen (Retd) G D Bakshi, Editor, Indian Military Review & Defence Analyst; Hardeep Puri, Chairman UN Security Council Committee against Terrorism & fmr Permanent Representative of India to UN; Syed Tariq Peerzada, Strategic Affairs Analyst; Admiral (retd) Javed Iqbal, Denfence Analyst; and Brig (Retd) Javed Hussain, Defence Analyst -- discuss the issue of India asserting its stand on Kashmir, forcing UN body UNMOGIP to back off, sending a clear signal to Pakistan, and Pak once again stating that Kashmir is a disputed territory.
The Indian govt on July 8 asked the UN observer mission -- The UN Military Observer Group in India and Pakistan (UNMOGIP) -- to vacate the govt bungalow in New Delhi to "rationalise" the presence of the group which the govt said has "outlived its relevance". The Indian position on the group has been that UNMOGIP's role has been overtaken by the Simla Agreement and the consequent establishment of the Line of Control. UNMOGIP is currently based out of a Type VII bungalow in Purana Qila Road. UNMOGIP observers have been located at the ceasefire line between India and Pakistan in Jammu and Kashmir since 1949 and supervise the truce between the two neighbours. As of May, UNMOGIP has 40 military observers, 23 international civilian personnel and 45 local civilian staff. The observer group is financed by the United Nations regular budget and appropriations for biennium 2014-2015 are USD 19.64 million. UN spokesperson Stephane Dujarric when asked whether the decision to close down the UNMOGIP office has implications on the Kashmir issue, he replied, "Definitely, I agree with what you just said. The UN observer mission is identifying possible alternative locations for its office in India. The UNMOGIP had been allotted 40 years ago free of charge. Reacting to India's move asking the UNMOGIP to vacate their office building
