One of the two senior Asian officers suing the Metropolitan Police for racial discrimination has seen a court reject his claim that he was overlooked for promotion after performing poorly in comparison to white colleagues.

Commander Shabir Hussain, 45, who is one of the highest-ranked ethnic minority officers in the country, blamed ‘racism’ for his inability to score better, and brought an employment tribunal case alleging he had been repeatedly overlooked for promotion because “my face did not fit and did not fit because I am not white.”

The employment tribunal had found there was “no substance” to Hussain’s claims after it emerged that during a promotion assessment in 2006, Hussain was given a mark of 3+ while four of the five remaining candidates were given “exceptional” marks of four or five.

Hussain then alleged that a “golden circle” of white officers had been chosen to run Britain’s largest force. The Yard said:  ”We are pleased to be vindicated of racially discriminating against Commander Hussain and we are disappointed that he felt it necessary to bring this case.”

At the three-day hearing at the tribunal in Stratford, east London, Hussain said he had been rejected for promotion from his rank of commander to deputy assistant commissioner an “unprecedented” four times, compared to white colleagues he described as being Sir Ian’s “favourite sons and daughters”, who had succeeded after two attempts.

Hussain, whose lawyers said his assignment to take charge of the police training college at Hendon in north London was evidence that he was in a “career cul-de-sac”, said his claim had “highlighted deficiencies in the Met’s promotion system” — in other words, he still believes that it is white people’s fault that he performed less well than his white colleagues.

He said: “I’m disappointed but the hearing did expose the shortcomings of the promotion process. I aim to carry on with my career as normal.” He had demanded £500,000 compensation for this alleged ‘racism’.