Shirayu Rana (left) accused Lorna Haydeni (right) of sexual harassment last month. They both worked at JP Morgan
The bitter legal battle at JPMorgan Chase has taken another dramatic turn after CEO Lorna Heidney filed a defamation suit against former banker Shirayu Rana, accusing him of making up false claims that she treated him as her “sex slave.”Haydeny filed the case in New York State Supreme Court on Tuesday, the New York Post reported.The scandal has thrown Wall Street into disarray since Rana first filed her lawsuit last month under the alias “John Doe.” In his original complaint, Rana accused Lorna of drugging him with Viagra, forcing him to perform non-consensual sex acts and subjecting him to racist abuse during their time at JPMorgan. Rana also alleged that Hajdini insulted his wife with insults as well.Now, Hadini is publicly fighting back.“Ms. Heidney categorically and unequivocally denies all allegations of illegal conduct,” the counterclaim stated.She continues: “These allegations are completely false, malicious, and fabricated, and were fabricated for the improper purpose of personal enrichment at the expense of the defendants and others.”According to the filing, Haydini alleges that Rana planned this for months to destroy her reputation, damage her career, and pressure her and JPMorgan into paying millions of dollars.
Her legal team accused him of “peddling his lies that Ms. Heidney was a racist and a sexual predator,” alleging that his intention was to “destroy her reputation by using influence to extort millions of dollars” from the bank and CEO.The lawsuit also makes another claim. It alleges that Rana had previously made “frighteningly similar fabricated allegations of sexual misconduct against a supervisor at a previous workplace.”
This claim has not been independently verified.“Ms. Heidney seeks to vindicate her name, mitigate her significant damages, and hold Plaintiff accountable for his deviant and unlawful conduct,” the filing said.The latest court action comes just weeks after Rana’s “draconian” allegations. He had initially sought a settlement of more than $20 million before leaving the bank. He later rejected a $1 million settlement offer from JPMorgan before filing his lawsuit.A JPMorgan spokesperson said: “We fully support Lorna and her right to defend herself and protect her reputation. As we have said from the beginning, we do not believe the allegations made against her or the company have any merit.”An internal investigation conducted by the bank found no evidence to support Rana’s accusations. Many human resources officials and senior officials in the company participated in it. Rana himself refused to participate or provide evidence.Many of Rana’s claims later came into question.One allegation stated that Heidini threatened to reduce his bonus unless he agreed to have sex with her. However, internal human resources documents reviewed by the New York Post showed that Heidini had no authority over Rana’s salaries, promotion opportunities or performance evaluations because they both reported to different managing directors.Another allegation described an incident in which Haydini took off her shirt and insulted Rana’s then-partner with racist language.
Haydene’s lawyers denied the accusation and said she never behaved inappropriately towards him.The dispute worsened after Rana falsely claimed that his father had died in order to secure an extended leave from work between late 2024 and May last year. His father, Chaitanya Rana, was later found alive at his home in Fairfax, Virginia.Chatbot logs from 2024 also reference a previous workplace complaint from Rana’s time at Morgan Stanley, where the alleged assailant was said to be a man.Rana’s career in finance has gone through an ups and downs. He recently left investment firm Bregal Sagemount shortly before the original lawsuit was filed. His previous roles included stints at Houlihan Lokey, Credit Suisse, Morgan Stanley and The Carlyle Group. He also spent a brief stint at MidCap Financial, a subsidiary of Apollo Global Management, where he was fired over performance concerns.
