Britain’s most senior Muslim police officer has reached an out-of-court settlement with London’s Metropolitan Police after accusing it of racial discrimination, the police force said Tuesday.
Tarique Ghaffur was suspended as assistant commissioner in September after launching legal proceedings against his boss, outgoing Metropolitan Police commissioner Ian Blair, whom he accused of discrimination over a long period.
Under the deal agreed with Blair and his deputy Richard Bryan, Ghaffur will retire, receive compensation and have part of his legal costs paid, the Metropolitan Police said in a statement.
“The Metropolitan Police Authority has paid a sum of money in settlement of Mr. Ghaffur’s claims, including contractual obligations, and a contribution to his legal costs,” it said.
“Mr Ghaffur has withdrawn the proceedings and his claims that Sir Ian and Mr Bryan acted in a racist or other discriminatory way towards him.”
The domestic Press Association news agency reported that the compensation amounted to 300,000 pounds (450,000 dollars, 350,000 euros) -- a figure that a police spokesman declined to confirm.
The issue of Muslim policing is sensitive in Britain, which has sought to win the trust of the country’s large Muslim communities in the fight against Islamist extremism.
Besides day-to-day policing of the British capital, the Metropolitan Police takes the lead in national anti-terrorism investigations.
The joint statement paid tribute to “the important service of Mr Ghaffur in the Metropolitan Police and his significant contribution to operational policing nationally during his 34-year career”.
“They (the police and the commissioner) recognise the hurt which he has felt over the past 18 months. Mr Ghaffur will retire from the Metropolitan Police on November 27, 2008,” it added.