A retired soldier has been given the nod to sue the Chief of Defence Staff (CDS) over his failure to promote him retroactively before his service ended in August last year.
Delivering a decision earlier this week, High Court Judge Devindra Rampersad granted Karamchand Badree, of Barrackpore, leave to pursue his judicial review lawsuit against the CDS.
According to his court filings, obtained by Guardian Media, Badree joined the T&T Regiment in 1998 and attained the rank of corporal.
In 2018, he was among a batch of corporals who were invited to participate in training for the rank of sergeant.
After completing the course, Badree was allegedly informed that he would be recommended for promotion.
However, he was told that such could only take place after the Regiment implemented a new promotions policy.
Badree eventually turned 45 in August last year and his service ended.
The following month, the CDS retroactively promoted Badree’s colleagues who had successfully participated in the training and who had not attained retirement age.
The promotions took effect from June 1 last year.
In the lawsuit, Badree’s attorneys are contending that he should have been retroactively promoted with his colleagues.
They claim that if Badree, who served as an air condition technician, would have been promoted, he would have been able to serve for two additional years based on the higher retirement age for that rank.
Through the lawsuit, Badree is seeking a series of declarations against the CDS and an order compelling it to reconsider the decision.
He is also seeking compensation for the $522,240 in salary and retirement benefits he would have received had he been promoted.
“The Applicant would have legitimately expected that the Respondent would have promoted him to the rank of sergeant with the other members of his cadre, having successfully completed the sergeant’s cadre and the Applicant fulfilling all pre-requisites of the established policy of the Regiment,” his attorneys said in their court filings.
Badree is being represented by Michael Rooplal and Jamie Maharaj.
The matter is expected to come up for case management before Justice Rampersad on June 10.