NEW HAVEN — A federal lawsuit filed Monday contends the Army has issued less-than-honorable discharges for potentially thousands of service members without properly considering post-traumatic stress and other mental health conditions.

The plaintiffs, two Army veterans who fought in Iraq and Afghanistan, allege they were wrongly denied honorable discharges. The suit, filed by the Yale Law School Veterans Legal Services Clinic, seeks class-action status.

Plaintiff Steve Kennedy said he developed PTSD and depression and began abusing alcohol and cutting himself. After going AWOL to attend his wedding, he was diagnosed by the Army with depression and received a general discharge. He was later diagnosed with PTSD by the Department of Veterans Affairs but his discharge status prevented him from receiving benefits including tax exemptions and scholarships open only to honorably discharged veterans, the lawsuit said.

‘‘As my PTSD became impossible to manage on my own, my commander told me that the only way I could receive treatment was by leaving the Army with a bad paper discharge,’’ said Kennedy, who is now pursuing a doctorate in biophysical chemistry.

‘‘Just like that, the Army wiped away years of distinguished service to my country and deemed it less than honorable,’’ he said.

It is the first suit to argue the Army inconsistently follows a requirement to use a liberal standard for PTSD or related claims, said Mario Gazzola, a law student intern with the Yale clinic.

Associated Press