A Pakistani-American businessman has sued two US-based journalists who work for Pakistani media outlets for allegedly defaming him on social media and causing harm to his reputation.
A defamation case has been lodged by business tycoon Tanweer Ahmed against BOL TV's Houston-based reporter Kamran Jilani and GEO TV's Dallas-based correspondent Raja Zahid A. Khanzada for their Meta (Facebook) posts, in which Ahmed says he was falsely accused of running a campaign against businessman Muhammad Tahir Javed to get him sacked as an Advisor on Overseas Investment for Caretaker Prime Minister Anwarul Haq Kakar.
Last month, Texas-based Pakistani-American businessman Javed joined Prime Minister Anwarul Haq Kakar's cabinet as his Special Assistant on Investment. But he was removed from the post just three weeks later.
Ahmed, through Houston-based Schmidt Law Firm's C. Thomas Schmidt, has sent defamation "cease and desist" letters to Jilani and Khanzada, demanding they delete their libelous publications on social media, pay damages to Ahmed and issue public apologies or else face trial.
The case against Raja Zahid Khanzada is about a defamatory post on his Facebook page published on October 17 in which Khanzada wrote: "Houston's Black Chicken Man, Just like black from the outside, it turned out to be black from the inside as well. After Tahir Javed became a minister, he met his demise in frustration, expressing his bitterness."
The Houston-based Pakistani business tycoon's lawyer has written to Khanzada that the contents of his publication are defamatory as in that Ahmed is a 'bitter and malicious man', has no morals, and is wrongfully maligning a third party.
Jilani was accused of making false accusations against Ahmed on October 17, 2023, and on October 25, 2023, on his Facebook page soon after American-Pakistani Tahir Javed was appointed as an advisor to PM Kakar.
In his posts, Jilani allegedly accused Ahmed of dishonesty and jealousy by alleging that he had started a smear campaign against Tahir Javed, a fellow Pakistani-American businessman.
Jilani allegedly called Tanweer Ahmed a "mafia don" who damaged US-Pakistan relations and assailed Javed. The reporter allegedly accused Ahmed of colluding with the Pakistani establishment to get Javed sacked from his short-lived post.
The BOL TV reporter is accused of falsely accusing the Houston-based business tycoon of funding the education of a senior Pakistani official's son at the University of Maryland.
In letters, Ahmed's lawyers say Kamran Jilani accused the business tycoon of dishonestly and maliciously engaging in a smear campaign against Javed, which has included character assassination and mudslinging because of his jealousy and personal animosity, making false allegations against Javed, getting Javed removed from his post in Pakistan; and that Ahmed puts on a facade for peace, but his behaviour is like that of a mafia don.
The legal letters tell both Kamran Jilani and Khanzada that their defamatory imputations are entirely false, and as such, they constitute libel and slander.
"You have made serious, false and wildly exaggerated statements about our client without a shred of truth to them or evidence of the same. There can be no doubt, based on the seriousness of the allegations and the extent of publication, that our client's reputation has been caused very serious harm by the publications. The allegations which you are intent on making about our client also have the tendency to damage his business relationships in the USA. You will be required to compensate our client for any financial loss caused by your conduct."
Ahmed is an American-Pakistani businessman, investor, entrepreneur and philanthropist who works with major companies, not-for-profit organizations and hospitals. He is the owner of the largest cricket complex in Houston, the Prairie View Cricket Complex and the owner of the Houston Hurricanes cricket franchise. The multi-millionaire businessman is the founder of a brand of food chains and also owns many food franchises such as Pizza Hut, Taco Bell and KFC. He owns California's largest transport company and has business interests in the energy sector and the medicine industry.
Ahmed is credited for sending over $50 million in aid to Pakistan during the devastating floods of 2022 in Pakistan. He is described as an incredibly well-respected and active member of the Houston community with a reputation for honesty and integrity.