IN a landmark ruling for religious freedom, the Court of Appeal has struck down Trinidad and Tobago Police Service (TTPS) regulations that prohibit male officers from wearing beards, finding that the long-standing “clean-shaven” rule unconstitutionally infringed the rights of Muslim officers.

The unanimous decision, delivered yesterday by Justices of Appeal Mark Mohammed, Maria Wilson and James Aboud, overturns a 2024 High Court ruling by Justice Betsy Ann Lambert-Peterson that had upheld the ban.

The case was brought by Police Constable Kristian Khan, a practising Muslim, who challenged Regulation 143(3)(b) of the Police Service Regulations 2007 and Commissioner’s Standing Order 6. Khan argued that the rules breached his constitutional rights to equality before the law and freedom of religious observance.