A JPMorgan Chase executive is taking her accuser to court.
Lorna Hajdini filed a defamation lawsuit in New York state Supreme Court on Tuesday (May 19), targeting Chirayu Rana, a 35-year-old former subordinate banker whose internal company complaint alleged Hadjini sexually harassed, sexually assaulted, and racially discriminated against him across several months in 2024. Hajdini's filing flatly rejects every claim Rana made.
"Ms. Hajdini categorically and unequivocally denies each and every allegation of unlawful conduct," the countersuit states, per the New York Post.
The suit characterizes Rana's conduct as libel and slander carried out in bad faith and with malice, and argues that his accusations exposed Hajdini to public contempt, hatred, and ridicule while causing her economic, reputational, and emotional harm. Hajdini's attorneys went further, accusing Rana of spreading lies about her being a racist and sexual predator as part of a calculated effort to extract millions of dollars from her and JPMorgan.
The filing also points to a pattern: "Plaintiff made up eerily similar fabricated allegations of sexual misconduct against a supervisor at a prior place of employment," the court document states.
Among the specific claims Hajdini contests are Rana's allegations that she drugged and sexually assaulted him, and that she questioned whether someone of his South Asian descent would ever be permitted to lead deals. The suit describes Rana's internal complaint as the endpoint of what Hajdini's legal team called a months-long campaign to smear her in the workplace, with third parties, in the press, and in court, using fabricated assertions.
According to TMZ, the filing characterizes the allegations as "entirely false, malicious, and fabricated, and were concocted for the improper purpose of personal enrichment at the expense of defendants and others." JPMorgan is also standing firmly behind its executive.
"We fully support Lorna and her right to defend herself and protect her reputation. As we have said from the outset, we don't believe the allegations against her or the firm have merit," a bank spokesman said, per the New York Post.
Hajdini is seeking punitive damages, attorney fees, and additional damages through the suit, which arrived just over three weeks after Rana's original complaint ignited the dispute.
