From correspondents in London, England, 05:02 PM IST

A Sikh police officer who has won more than Pound300,000 in payouts from London police over racial discrimination is seeking more compensation for victimisation.

Detective Sergeant Gurpal Virdi, who has worked in the Metropolitan Police for 26 years, went back to court Wednesday saying he is being victimised after returning to work.

Virdi, 49, won a reinstatement, an apology and 240,000 pounds in compensation after being wrongly dismissed in 2002 on charges of sending racist mail to colleagues.

He won another 70,000 pounds June 2 after a tribunal upheld his complaint that the force was blocking his opportunities for promotion.

The fresh case relates to the first four months after he returned to work in July last year.

Launching the case Wednesday at the Central London Employment Tribunal, Virdi said: "I believe that I have been victimised as a result of bringing employment tribunal proceedings of race discrimination and victimisation."

In March last year he said he was suffering "extreme stress" as he prepared for his second tribunal case and was signed off sick for two months.

Virdi's blood pressure soared and he began bleeding from the ears. The tribunal hearing took place while he was off sick.

Virdi claims that when he returned to work, he was shunned by his senior officers, who avoided him or only communicated messages by email.

Virdi said: "I was being left out of projects, I was left in the office by myself, my meetings with other police employees were being questioned, my head of unit was avoiding me, my line manager was never there and communicated with me by email.

"I felt bullied and ostracised. I believe that this amounts to victimisation. These incidents are somehow being orchestrated to get me out of the SCD (Special Crime Directorate) office."

Virdi said a senior officer told him he was a "troublesome individual" and wanted to downgrade him to a community sergeant.

He told the tribunal there was a conspiracy by certain officers against him. "I have achieved a great deal to tackle discrimination within the Met," he said.

"However, it would appear that when I, an ethnic minority officer, need assistance, I have been ostracised with decisions made and strings (were) being pulled at senior level."

His solicitor, Arpita Dutt of Russell, Jones and Walker, said: "It's not about the money - it's about what's happened.

"He has tried to resolve that internally but to no avail and therefore feels he has no option but to return to the employment tribunal and challenge the organisation, expose the victimisation and gain justice which he feels he is not getting within the Metropolitan Police Service. We are confident of success."

(Staff Writer, © IANS)