LONDON
Pakistani-American tech entrepreneur Zia Chishti has won a defamation lawsuit against a Pakistani magazine and its editor over leveling false, defamatory and malicious allegations against him.
The magazine ‘Narratives’ had leveled serious accusations of misconduct—sexual, toxic and business violations—against him.
Zia Chishti, the tech entrepreneur who had founded the multi-billion-dollar company behind Invisalign dental braces and an artificial intelligence company Afiniti and was awarded the prestigious Sitara-e-Imtiaz in 2018 for his contributions, had initiated a legal case against the magazine.
A Session Court has ruled that Mr. Chishti was defamed without any basis and out of malice. In his ruling, Judge Muhammad Farhan Nabi stated that Narratives Magazine had offered no credible evidence whatsoever in its defense, and that the magazine had caused Mr. Chishti severe damage.
The court has directed the magazine to pay damages to Mr Chishti, stating that the editor “is also directed to publish a clarification along with apology in his magazine regarding the article in question.”
When reached for comment, Mr. Chishti stated: “I thank the court for providing me justice. I also want to thank my family and my closest friends for standing with me through exceptionally difficult times. This is the first of many cases I intend to win as the truth increasingly comes to light.”
Harvard Professor Emeritus and renowned litigator Alan Dershowitz took a personal interest in the proceedings and commented in a statement: “The decision from the court in Pakistan is the first to vindicate Mr. Chishti’s position that the allegations against him are just that: allegations.
I have advised Mr. Chishti followed this case with interest. It is part of a broader set of defamation lawsuits brought by Mr. Chishti, including suits against his accuser in the US and against the Telegraph in the UK. Many in politics, business, and the press rushed to judge Mr. Chishti simply on the allegations levelled against him, without giving Mr. Chishti any opportunity to establish his innocence.”
As a result of the allegations against him, in November 2021 Mr. Chishti stepped down from his leadership of TRG.
In turn, Mr. Chishti has accused Mr. Khaishgi and Mr. Aslam of various civil and criminal misconduct and called for a general meeting of shareholders to remove them from their positions on the board of TRG.
People associated with TRG declined to comment on the record. Repeated emails to the attorneys representing Ms. Spottiswoode and her co-defendants offering them the opportunity to state their position without the benefit of immunity provided by the U.S. Congress went unanswered.
Under Mr. Khaishgi and Mr. Aslam, TRG’s stock price has fallen approximately 60 percent from Rs 151 to Rs 62 while they have paid themselves over one billion rupees in compensation.
Mr. Aslam and Mr. Khaishgi have initiated litigation in both Pakistan and the U.S. against Mr. Chishti sought to prevent him from retaking control of TRG, primarily taking the same line of argument levelled by Narratives Magazine, and now discredited by the Lahore Court as being without basis.
