Lord Ouseley's attack on the comments of home secretary David Blunkett today fuelled the row over the sentences handed out to Bradford rioters.

The former head of the Commission for Racial Equality criticised Mr Blunkett after he dubbed those jailed for the riots as "maniacs" who should stop "whining" about their sentences.

"I think David Blunkett shouldn't be so dismissive in the language he uses in such a brutal manner," said Lord Ouseley.

The row comes after claims of growing support by a campaign group set up by families of some of those jailed for their part in the July 2001 riots.

The Fair Justice for All Campaign claims to have the support of councillors, prominent figures and the Asian community.

But today leading public figures and victims of last year's disturbances defended the sentences.

The campaign has called for a public inquiry into the sentencing and more than 1,000 signatures have signed a petition backing the move.

Yesterday morning, a dozen women and their children from the campaign stood in silent protest outside Bradford Crown Court.

Tracy Latif, 32, said: "These sentences affect all the families of those involved. My children ask me when their father is coming home."

She claims that the rioters were sentenced as "groups, not individuals" and that many given long sentences were not involved in the damage or injuries to police.

"We accept they have committed a crime and should be punished but not for somebody else's doing," she said.

The campaign's spokesman Shanaz Lal, 25, a community worker, vowed that the campaign would last longer than the "the few weeks" that Home Secretary David Blunkett gave it.

"We have widespread support and are growing stronger," he said. "The campaign will last as long as it takes to get justice."

Their solicitor, human rights lawyer Imran Khan, has more than 100 cases to look at.

Ishtiaq Ahmed, general secretary of the Bradford Council for Mosques, welcomed the campaign for highlighting some of the concerns of its members.

"Many issues need to be looked at if we are to restore the confidence of young people in the police and the law," he said.

Councillor Sajawal Hussain (Lab, University) supports the campaign, believing the "disproportionate" sentencing to be a race issue.

"This is wholesale sentencing because they were Muslims," he said. "It has marginalised Muslims and destroyed their careers or education. In some cases, people did not injure anyone or damage any property, they just had a stone in their hand. They should have been given community service, probation or a big fine, not five years in jail."

Councillors Amir Hussain (Lab, Toller) and Mehrban Hussain (Con, University) agreed that the sentencing was "harsh" but did not agree with the campaign's rallying tactics.

Coun Amir Hussain said: "I am unhappy about the way they are protesting. If people are not happy about the sentencing of individuals, I believe that we have got the judicial system through which they should go.

"I agree with Judge Gullick's comments that it is not about throwing stones, it is more than that. If people saw the video, it would tell a different story."

Allerton businessman Arshad Javed, who joined the list of Asian names on an advert apologising for the riots, said there was a "significant number of business people supporting the campaign".

"Some people received four-and-a-half years for throwing two stones," he said. "We are questioning this blanket approach."

David McCann, whose DIY store on Oak Lane was ram-raided and looted during the riots, said he had little sympathy for the campaigners.

He claimed the majority of the Asian community wanted to see those responsible serve long jail terms.

"If they had not been given tough sentences there would have been trouble," he said. "When you read between the lines, people who have been filmed throwing one or two stones have been in the riots for five or six hours.

"The rest of the Asian community is right behind the sentences and we are all pulling together to improve things. It is an effective deterrent and they will think before doing it again."

John Pennington, President of the Bradford Chamber of Commerce, watched the rioters burn down the BMW garage in Oak Lane.

He said: "We do not support the campaign for a reduction in sentences.

"The experts know more about it than the public and if they deem the sentences to be just then the community has to go along with that."