NEW YORK — JPMorgan investment banker Lorna Hajdini filed a countersuit against Chirayu Rana in a New York state court in Manhattan on Tuesday night, accusing him of defamation and seeking unspecified damages for emotional distress and other claims. The filing responds to a lawsuit Rana brought on April 27 alleging that Hajdini coerced him into non-consensual sexual activity over several months.

In her countersuit, Hajdini said Rana fabricated allegations that she raped and drugged him in order to attract press coverage, cause her pain, and extract millions of dollars from her and JPMorgan. The countersuit said he orchestrated a months-long campaign of false accusations that damaged her career and reputation and turned her life into a global tabloid spectacle. She also said she faced continuous mocking, ridicule, and harassment online with jokes and sexual memes that she attributed to his allegations.

"Ms Hajdini categorically and unequivocally denies each and every allegation of unlawful conduct," the countersuit said. "These allegations are entirely false, malicious, and fabricated, and were concocted for the improper purpose of personal enrichment at the expense of defendants and others."

Rana, 35, is a vice-president in leveraged finance at JPMorgan, which is also a defendant in his lawsuit. He sued under a pseudonym but has since been publicly identified. JPMorgan placed him on administrative leave in June 2025, where he remained when he filed his complaint.

In his April 27 complaint, Rana accused Hajdini of leveraging her seniority to coerce him into sexual activity and threatened him with racially derogatory language, saying she "owned" him and would sabotage his career if he did not comply. He also alleged she told him, "I bet your little Asian, fish head, wife doesn't have these cannons."

In her countersuit, Hajdini said she had never been Rana's supervisor, had never used racial epithets, and had never threatened him. She said she was a JPMorgan executive director who joined the bank in 2011 and had never been the subject of a discrimination or harassment complaint. According to internal human resources documents, she had no authority over his promotion or compensation because they reported to different managing directors. She also said she had never visited several locations where Rana alleged the assaults occurred.

The countersuit further said Rana had made fabricated allegations of sexual misconduct against a supervisor at a prior place of employment and had told his superiors that his father had died to obtain multiple leave allowances from fall 2024 until May 2025. An internal investigation by JPMorgan found no evidence to support his allegations and noted that he refused to participate or provide evidence.

"Ms Hajdini seeks to vindicate her name, mitigate the substantial damage inflicted upon her, and hold the plaintiff accountable for his depraved and unlawful conduct," the countersuit said. In a statement, JPMorgan said: "We fully support Lorna and her right to defend herself and protect her reputation. As we've said from the outset, we don't believe the allegations against her or the firm have merit."