India, June 6 -- Fiat Chrysler's U.S. Sales Head Reid Bigland has filed a "whistleblower" lawsuit against the auto giant alleging that he has been made a scapegoat over the federal probe into the brand's inflated sales reporting practices.

According to the Detroit News, Bigland said he cooperated with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and testified about the sales reports. Bigland says the sales report practices predated his appointment to the position of sales chief in 2011.

Bigland claims Fiat Chrysler executives cut his pay by 90% for cooperating with the investigation and used it to pay fines or settlements reached with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

The lawsuit said the automaker's actions will cost Bigland mor...