A left-wing independent candidate in Bradford West who is standing against a sitting Labour MP is telling voters she is the real pro-Corbyn candidate, who will "strengthen" the Labour leader's hand if elected.
Former Respect party leader Salma Yaqoob, who announced she would be standing against Labour's Naz Shah earlier this month, kickstarted her campaign by sending leaflets to locals saying: "A vote for Salma is a vote for Corbyn."
The claim has now prompted a stern warning letter from Labour HQ, who want to put to bed any rumours that they're not fully behind their own candidate, BuzzFeed News has learned.
The campaign material being pushed through letterboxes says of Yaqoob: "A fearless fighter for justice, she will strengthen Corbyn's hand. Sadly, if re-elected Shah will continue her attacks on Corbyn." It includes a photo of Yaqoob with the Labour leader – the pair are longtime anti-war campaigners.
It also features an image of Shah's appearance on Channel 4 News in May 2015, with the caption "Pretends to support Corbyn, but attacks him when it matters" and accuses Shah of being part of "the cabal of MPs" undermining the Labour leader.
The leaflet also attacks Shah for not voting against the Tory welfare bill.
BuzzFeed News has seen the cautionary letter sent to Yaqoob reprimanding her for using the slogan "A vote for Salma is a vote for Corbyn", as well as claiming she had the "tacit support" of the Labour party.
"You seek to imply by the use of this leaflet that there is some kind of endorsement in this election to be held on the 8 June 2017. This is not the case and is misleading," John Stolliday, the director of Labour's governance and legal unit, wrote in an email sent before a hustings event at Bradford University on Monday night.
The letter is seen as an attempt to quash rumours of the leadership's preference for Yaqoob, and a public attempt to throw its full weight behind Naz Shah.
"Naz Shah has been a fantastic Member of Parliament for the people of Bradford West and all of our efforts and support are dedicated to returning her to Parliament in the coming weeks," the letter adds.
A spokesperson for Labour said: “There is only one Labour Party candidate in Bradford West and that is Naz Shah. Naz has been an outstanding member of parliament for Bradford West since trouncing George Galloway two years ago and if re-elected will continue to be a strong voice for local people.
“She, and only she, has the full support and endorsement of Jeremy Corbyn as the best choice for Bradford West."
Shah confirmed to BuzzFeed News that Corbyn had also recorded a video supporting her, which would be launched during her campaign for re-election.
Speaking to BuzzFeed News after the event, Yaqoob said she stood by the words written on her leaflet. "I stick by that, of course I do, because all the things Jeremy Corbyn has been championing I've been championing over many years, not just because it's ended up in the manifesto," she said.
"Sadly the Labour party representative here [in Bradford West] has not been on that same policy platform, and she's only changed because the leader has changed."
"In fact when the leadership election happened [Shah] was campaigning actively against him," Yaqoob added in reference to her rival's support for Yvette Cooper in 2015.
During a raucous hustings with an audience of around 200 people, Yaqoob – a well-known public figure in the Muslim community – was frequently cheered for the points she made on education, welfare, the green economy, and the city's living wage.
At one point Shah was booed when she said she was straight to the point in response to an audience question asking why political candidates should be trusted.
Only one person in the audience said they had changed their mind on who to vote for after the hustings when the chairman asked for a show of hands.
The campaign in Bradford West has already proven to be dramatic. A week earlier, Shah walked out of an event organised by Bradford Muslim Women's Council after she discovered that no other candidates besides herself and Yaqoob were invited.
Shah claimed the event was "discriminatory on the grounds of both religion and gender" as none of the other candidates were given a platform.
Yaqoob is campaigning with "four priorities" including education and skills, and said during the hustings she supported a progressive alliance and would work with both Labour and Tories.
Labour members pointed out on social media that Yaqoob had been campaigning for Labour's mayoral candidate in the West Midlands at the beginning of the month and has previously had her application for Labour party membership rejected.
Here's 4 reasons to vote @UKLabour's candidate @sionsimon for West Midlands Mayor on Thurs May 4th. Don't 4get Tor… https://t.co/q1C1zzPQjx
Yaqoob had told local press that people in Bradford had "urged" her to stand, and rejected claims it was part of a Respect grudge match. Respect candidate George Galloway, who was previously expelled from Labour, lost the seat at the 2015 general election.
Respect, an anti-war and anti-Tony Blair party, was founded by Salma Yaqoob and George Monbiot in 2004, and grew out of the Stop the War coalition.
A spokesperson for Yaqoob's campaign said: "This week the whole thing has snowballed really. We're just moving strength to strength every day. We just seem to be growing; the momentum just seems to be growing day by day.
"Salma, she knows what she's talking about, she's straight up, she doesn't beat around the bush. People appreciate that of her."
The spokesperson acknowledged receipt of Labour's letter but said they weren't worried: "There's no real response, to be honest with you, as far as I'm concerned... There's no sort of legal letter, because they're not a legal entity, are they?
"They're a political party, they're not a law firm. I think they're just a bit rattled to be honest with you. I think [Shah] should concentrate on the campaign as opposed to our campaign material really.
"Obviously they [Labour] are worried. I mean, anyone can use a picture of them and Corbyn. Doesn't mean you work with Corbyn or he's endorsing you, does it, if you use a picture?"
When asked whether he thought Yaqoob had the Labour leader's support, he said: "They're friends, aren't they? Obviously Corbyn is in the middle of an election, so his priority is his own party.
"Would he support Salma if it wasn't in the middle of an election? I'm sure he would come out publicly and endorse her. But obviously the situation that we're in is very different. Yeah, I think he'd support her if he could."
A source close to Corbyn told BuzzFeed News that any suggestion the Labour leader wanted Yaqoob to win over Naz Shah was "absolute nonsense and very disappointing".
Check you post today, leaflets have been delivered all over #BradfordWest #TeamSalma
Aisha Ali Khan, a former parliamentary aide to Galloway, said Labour's letter was "quite a serious step for the Labour party to be taking".
She added: "It shows something. It shows the Labour party are throwing their weight behind Naz and supporting her all the way, and also it shows they are worried [about] the impact that Salma is making by positioning herself as the Labour candidate, as the real Labour candidate, the real supporter of Jeremy Corbyn."
While the letter could throw a spanner in the works for the Yaqoob camp, Khan said, Bradford West would remain a tight race. "Politics being politics in Bradford West, there's nothing to be taken for granted, nothing is certain. It's all going to fall down on the day of the election," she added.
In 2015, Shah beat Galloway into second place, with 19,977 votes to 8,557, in a campaign characterised by personal attacks, threats of legal action, and claims of breaches of electoral law.
It meant the West Yorkshire constituency returned as a Labour seat after Galloway had won it in 2012 in a landslide he dubbed the "Bradford spring", which had shocked the Labour party.
Khan said a number of people in Yaqoob's campaign were former Respect members. "Obviously she was our leader and was a great inspirational woman... even after she stepped down in 2012, it makes sense for a lot of people in Bradford who would get behind her campaign."
During the 2015 general election campaign Galloway accused Shah, who came into politics as a campaigner for domestic violence victims, of lying about her forced marriage. However, Khan said Yaqoob had told her she would not tolerate any personal campaigning against Shah this time around.
BuzzFeed News has seen leaflets accusing Shah of "supporting a suspected terrorist", and of being an ally of a Shia cleric based in Bradford, which suggests a sectarian element to the anti-Naz campaign.
Parveen Akhtar, a lecturer in political science at Aston University, was one of those who attended the hustings. She said Bradford had historic ties with the Labour movement.
"This is a two-woman race, and whoever wins will be left of centre with links to Labour," she said. She added the campaign in Bradford was "particularly interesting" because the constituency was until recently mired by clan – or biraderi – politics.
"Bradford has a significant Muslim vote and it will be the first time two Muslim women will have stood against each other in a British general election," Akhtar added.
"Indeed, Galloway won in 2012 because he campaigned against clan politics, appealing to the youth vote and women. That two Muslim women are standing – and it is a two-horse race between them effectively – means there has been a shift in the dynamics of politics in the city."
Correction
Salma Yaqoob co-founded Respect along with George Monbiot in 2004. An earlier version of this post misstated the party's origins.