Zia Chishti, the former chief executive of TRG Pakistan, has filed a new civil suit in a lower court in Lahore against TRG Pakistan, its international affiliate, and co-founders Hasnain Aslam and Mohammed Khaishgi. The case marks the latest in a series of legal actions initiated by Mr Chishti, who resigned from the company in 2021 following a sexual misconduct ruling against him in the United States.
Filed through his employee Muhammad Sohail acting as “special attorney”, the suit seeks to involve individuals and entities largely based outside Pakistan. Mr Aslam and Mr Khaishgi have lived in the United States since the 1990s, TRG International is registered in Bermuda, and TRG Pakistan is headquartered in Karachi. Despite this, the case has been brought before a civil judge in Lahore.
Court documents from 10 July 2025 claim that the mother of Mr Aslam refused to receive court notice in person in Lahore. Mr Aslam, however, told reporters that his mother has been in the United States since 19 May, and that he had not been informed about the suit prior to being contacted by media. The apparent contradiction has raised concerns about irregularities in the service process.
Legal commentators say this mirrors a previous case filed by Mr Chishti in 2024 against Karachi-based journalist Amir Zia, in which a defamation judgment was reportedly obtained without the defendant being notified or given an opportunity to respond. Critics argue that such cases reflect a pattern of using lower courts to secure ex-parte orders through questionable means.
Mr Chishti has faced increasing legal and financial pressure in recent years. In 2022, the US Congress made public an arbitration ruling that found him liable for over $5 million in damages for sexual harassment, assault and battery. The ruling followed testimony by a former female employee during a US congressional hearing. Mr Chishti subsequently lost a defamation case against the same individual in the United States.
In 2023, he initiated criminal defamation proceedings in a lower court in Karachi against board members and executives of TRG International and TRG Pakistan. That case was later stayed by the Sindh High Court and subsequently suspended by the Supreme Court of Pakistan.
More recently, a US federal court ordered Mr Chishti to pay $9.1 million to TRG following an arbitration decision. The US Internal Revenue Service has also filed a $10.3 million tax lien against him. Separately, court filings show Mr Chishti defaulted on a loan of over Rs 3 billion from JS Bank.
Despite these setbacks, he secured an order from the Sindh High Court in June 2025 to halt a $50 million remittance by a TRG International subsidiary to Pakistan. The Supreme Court has since intervened, issuing a ‘status quo’ order while it hears the company’s appeal.
Corporate lawyers familiar with the ongoing disputes describe the most recent suit as part of a broader campaign to pressure TRG’s leadership through repeated legal filings. “This suit appears to have been filed in bad faith,” said one legal expert, who requested anonymity. “There are serious questions about how service was recorded and why a Lahore court was chosen when most parties involved are based abroad.”
As the Supreme Court prepares to hear further appeals related to Mr Chishti’s litigation, the battle over control of TRG remains unresolved. Financial markets and legal observers are watching closely as the company continues to respond to what it describes as baseless and disruptive legal action.