Maroc - NEWSDAY.CO.TT - A la Une - 14/Jan 04:58

Trial against Dr Avinash Sawh begins

The civil trial against Dr Avinash Sawh, the doctor who was suspended in 2023 for making racially insensitive remarks two years earlier, filed by his former employee, has started in the High Court. Justice Christopher Sieuchand is presiding over the claim filed by Chantelle Figaro against Sawh, his wife Allison Dass-Sawh, and Sawh’s Medical Associates. The trial began on January 13, and continues the following day. Figaro has sued for constructive dismissal, assault and battery, breach of contract and related damages arising out of her employment at Sawh’s Medical Associates between October 2019 and October 2020. Figaro was questioned at length by Sawh’s attorney Mario Merritt about her employment, relationship with the defendants, and the circumstances under which she left the medical practice in 2020. In her testimony, Figaro explained that she knew Dr Sawh through her parents, since her mother had worked for his father before she was born and that the families were familiar with each other. “I knew him as much as we paid visits to him as a doctor,” she testified. According to Figaro, Dr Sawh offered her a job after learning she was pursuing phlebotomy training. Under questioning, Figaro rejected the suggestion that she stayed only to obtain certification and then left once she achieved it. Figaro said she resigned after reaching what she described as a “breaking point,” testifying that Sawh verbally abused her, cursed her, and made remarks about her now-deceased father. She testified that she attempted several times to address his behaviour directly and sent a message informing him of her intention to leave after a heated conversation on October 30, 2020, followed by a formal resignation letter. “I did try multiple times to speak to him about his behaviour,” she said. She also testified that though she did not make a police report at the time, she was fearful of his temper. Figaro denied being habitually late or incompetent and said she felt intimidated by both Sawh and his wife. Another former employee, Dr Danielle Stewart, also testified. She told the court she did not report Dr Sawh to the Medical Board during her employment and did not describe him as aggressive at the time. However, she confirmed hearing a telephone conversation in early 2020 that raised concerns. Dr Stewart described sitting in a consultation room when Dr Sawh called Figaro. She said she did not intervene at the time. “This was my first job, this is his establishment, I didn’t feel emboldened enough to tell him his conduct was inappropriate,” she said, adding, “I did not have the guts.” She also acknowledged that although her professional oath required her to raise concerns about issues such as the erasure of expiration dates on medication, she did not do so at the time, conceding that the correct step would have been to report the matter to the Medical Board. Sawh testified on January 13, admitting under cross-examination by Prakash Ramadhar, to using a derogatory term but claimed such behaviour was rare. He denied ever threatening to kill someone or have someone killed. He said Figaro worked overtime and double shifts but stated he would not describe her as an exceptional employee. Dr Sawh denied authoring a recommendation letter for Figaro, claiming his signature was forged and that he had never seen the document before. He also denied sending messages referred to in Figaro’s evidence, suggesting they could have been generated using artificial intelligence or fabricated by someone else, noting that multiple people had access to his phone. He acknowledged that he had not raised claims of AI fabrication or forgery in his witness statement, nor had he reported the matter to police. He admitted having pornography on his phone but denied sending explicit material to Figaro. Shown screenshots of messages and voice notes allegedly from his phone, Dr Sawh said the voice in the recordings sounded like his but insisted the words were altered. “The voice is mine but not the words,” he said, but admitting he did not go to the police. When questioned about allegations that he accused staff of stealing money and threatened them, Dr Sawh said he was angry but denied making specific threats attributed to him. Figaro is suing Dr Sawh, Allison Dass-Sawh and Sawh’s Medical Associates for declarations of repudiatory breach of contract, constructive dismissal, assault and battery, breach of implied employment terms. She alleges she was subjected to repeated verbal abuse, racially offensive language, sexual harassment, unsafe medical practices, and assaults during her employment, leading to severe psychological harm including depression, anxiety and suicidal ideation. She also claims loss of future earning capacity and reputational damage. In 2023, the Medical Board of Trinidad and Tobago suspended Dr Sawh for one week after finding him guilty of “infamous and disgraceful conduct” arising from a race-related rant against Figaro in 2020. Recordings of that incident circulated widely on social media, prompting calls for his medical licence to be revoked. Dr Sawh later issued a public apology. Figaro is represented by attorneys Prakash Ramadhar, Saira Lakhan and Kristian Dass, while Dr Sawh is represented by Mario Merritt and Lemuel Murphy. The post Trial against Dr Avinash Sawh begins appeared first on Trinidad and Tobago Newsday.