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Contradiction: April 2010 Announcement - No Consultation?

Brian Gray tries to establish with Nagib that the April Announcement was written in consultation with all the LIF. Sachedina later contradicts this point of view and establishes that in fact the draft of the second announcement was not circulated to anyone in the leadership before it was read out in Jamatkhanas as being from the LIF, Councils, ITREB etc on the same evening that it was written by a couple of persons including Sachedina.

[Note: Extracts of Federal Court Transcripts of Cross-Examinations held August 2010 for Summary Judgement Motions in the Aga Khan Copyright Lawsuit
Sections starting with N. Tajdin #... Means Nagib Tajdin is the one answering questions in the next section
Sections starting with Jiwa #... Means Alnaz Jiwa is the one answering questions in the next section
Sections starting with Sachedina #... Means Shafik Sachedina is the one answering questions in the next section
Sections starting with Bhaloo #... Means Aziz Bhaloo is the one answering questions in the next section
]


N. Tajdin #364:
Cross-Examination by Mr Gray.
Q. Can you identify that as an announcement made by the Ismaili Leaders' International Forum to the Jamatkhannas?
A. Yes.
Q. And so this was on or about April 15, 2010, read to all of the prayer halls at Jamatkhannas?
A. Yes, around that date. I think it
was read the previous day in Canada, the next day in
Nairobi.
Q. So, again, the whole international...the Leaders' International Forum, that is what the LIF is, right? The Leaders' International Forum?
A. Yes.
Q. Those are the leaders of the Ismaili...can I call it religion, Ismaili religion?
A. Yes.
Q. Ismaili religion. They are the leaders of the Ismaili religion, and the National Council. All of them have issued this announcement, in the Jamatkhannas worldwide?
A. I would say it is not all of them. When a corporation gets an announcement out, it is not everybody who is involved. Maybe one person has drawn this, and sends it to be read.
Q. Okay, one person...
A. How can I know?
Q. But circulated it around to the institutions, to go...
A. Yes.
Q. ...through the procedure, right?
A. Yes, circulated all over the place.
Q. Before it was read, it would have been circulated around to the institutional leaders to review.
A. I am not sure. How can I know? I am not part of them, so I don't know what is the procedure there.
Q. Is it conceivable to you that His Highness would not have been aware of the reading of this announcement?
A. Yes, it is conceivable. There are announcements every Friday, every important days...
Q. Does the announcement...
A. ...there are so many of them.


Sachedina #727 - #745:
Cross-Examination by Mr Tajdin.
Q. Okay. How was these four countries affected chosen? In 39 you say: 'As this represented a grave and unprecedented step, His Highness authorized the LIF to issue a second announcement.' Was this done in writing?
A. No. He called me.
Q. He called you?
A. Yes.
Q. So you prepared the announcement?
A. Sorry?
Q. You prepared the announcement?
A. No. He called me. He himself had done a lot of work on the announcement, and he was giving me instructions to say that these are the four countries he wants. Because originally -- normally, announcements of the LIF go global, but in this particular case, it was His Highness's wishes that to keep this announcement in only those four countries.
Q. So you said His Highness had worked quite a lot on this second announcement. Has he shown you a memo or some notes or something which became the base of that second announcement?
A. I'm not privy to Hazar Imam's own work that he does with his staff.
Q. Okay. So announcement, Hazar Imam told you his notes over the phone?
A. No. He himself read out the components to it. It says this is what he wants to say. Because all of these quotations were he -- he wanted those quotations put into the announcement.
Q. So you took some notes during that phone conversation?
A. No, because I was in a car and he was telling me on the phone and I was driving from wherever it was to the airport. So I was being told by -- he was reading it out to me.
Q. So you did not take any note of --
A. No. And he then says that Sherbanoo or somebody will send me the -- whatever the final draft will be.
Q. That's fine. So did Sherbanoo send you the draft?
A. I would presume there must be a draft somewhere, but I haven't got -- I can't tell you that I have definitely got --
Q. Mr. Sachedina, can we have it as an undertaking to provide --
A. It's privileged. As I said to you, what Imam sends me is privileged communication.
Q. It's draft of something which was read -- (inaudible)
A. But I don't know --
Q. Do you agree to it? It's a draft --
MR. GRAY: We don't agree to produce it. We'll take it under advisement though. You want the draft of the announcement of April --
--- UNDER ADVISEMENT
BY MR. TAJDIN:
Q. Yes, I would like to see --
MR. GRAY: April the 15th, I think it is.
BY MR. TAJDIN:
Q. The draft which Mr. Sherbanoo sent to Mr. Sachedina?
A. No. The draft of the final text that Hazar Imam authorized --
Q. So it came from Sherbanoo --
A. Sherbanoo's office, who said this is the text which Hazar Imam has authorized.
Q. Do you remember approximately at what date?
A. It was the day -- the day the announcement happened.
Q. So the same day it was read?
A. I think it was either the same day or the evening. Because I think I was on my way -- it's my recollection, and I want to make it recorded it was my best recollection, and I was in -- and I was going -- and I was travelling to London, and it was on the road that I got this message, and that is when this thing was. And he then says 'I am now authorizing you to release this announcement through the LIF. Talk to Azim, talk to everybody, this is the position.'
Q. Okay. So that announcement was released by the LIF, not by the Council or their institution?
A. No. It came -- as I said to you, it was released through --
Q. By the LIF?
A. LIF.


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