Singapore man is suing for US$2.3 million because he was friendzoned

The backstory: It's a tale of heartache that turned litigious. Back in 2016, Nora Tan and K. Kawshigan became friends in Singapore. But by 2020, things started to get tense. Tan saw Kawshigan as just a friend, but he had romantic feelings for her. When Tan asked to see him less, Kawshigan felt hurt and threatened to sue her for causing him emotional trauma. Despite Tan's efforts to mend fences, Kawshigan refused to respect her boundaries.

It's not like Tan didn't try – she went to a year and a half of counseling sessions with Kawshigan to help him get over her. But he still wasn't happy with being only friends and kept pushing for more.

The development: In April 2022, Tan filed a claim against Kawshigan for harassment. Kawshigan had threatened to sue her but was pressuring her to "settle" and agree to his demands. After she declined, Kawshigan went forward with a S$3 million (US$2.3 million) lawsuit in the High Court in July, saying Tan defamed him, caused him to lose business deals and that he had to seek therapy due to the stress she caused him.

Tan filed a counterclaim in her defense. Kawshigan had previously sued Tan in a smaller court, but the judge threw this out. The previous lawsuit filed by Kawshigan was dismissed as being "manifestly groundless and without foundation," with the judge noting that Kawshigan was using the court to harass and "oppress" Tan.

The current case is set for a pre-trial hearing on February 9. Ms Tan is seeking S$480 (US$367) and S$1,000 (US$764) in damages for installing security equipment, like a digital door viewer, a siren alarm sensor and a smart video doorbell, as well as payment for the expenses she incurred for counseling sessions she participated in at Kawshigan's request.

Key comments:

"Considered in totality, I find that the present action was intentionally initiated by the claimant with the ulterior motive of vexing or oppressing the defendant by requiring her to defend various claims that fundamentally stem from the same factual matrix in different forums," said State Courts deputy registrar Lewis Tan, about the previously tossed lawsuit against Nora Tan.

"This court will not be an accessory to his calculated attempt to compel engagement from the defendant who, after years of massaging the claimant's unhappiness, has finally decided to stand up to his threats rather than cower and give in to his demands," said Lewis Tan.

"Don't you get it? I don't care about you anymore from here on. From now on, you are the Respondent and I am the Claimant. And emotionally, till the day I die, you are the cause of my trauma," Kawshigan said in messages to Tan that were shared in a court judgment.

Kawshigan said in his claim that his ability to make money as an "active high-capital trader by night and a busy CEO by day" was impacted by Tan's rejection.