The president and two committee members of the Singapore Polo Club have failed to strike out a lawsuit brought by the club's former polo captain against them.

That means the actual hearing into the case will go ahead, at a later date to be fixed.

Dr Ali Namazie, who was stripped of his post five months after he was elected, had sued the club, its president Iqbal Jumabhoy and committee members Kevin Wilkinson and Ian Lander.

He challenged the decision of the club's committee to suspend him for one-and-a-half years and to bar him from playing in tournaments on its grounds.

He claimed the decision was unfair and sought to set aside the suspension.

Mr Jumabhoy, Mr Wilkinson and Mr Lander then applied to strike out the legal action against them as individuals, arguing that they cannot be personally held liable.

But Dr Namazie, represented by Mr Daniel Koh, contended that they should be made to bear the damages.

On Monday, in a hearing in chambers, Justice Woo Bih Li dismissed the trio's application to strike out the claims against them.

Dr Namazie, a physicist by profession, was accused by the committee of acting in a manner prejudicial to the club when he authorised a $70,000 payment to the architects and master planner of the project to build the National Equestrian Park.

He contends that the payment was justified because it was for actual work done and that it was in the club's best interests not to delay the completion date.