TENSIONS are running high in parts of Bradford ahead of tomorrow's elections, with the police preparing to respond to any trouble at polling stations.

Chief Superintendent Scott Bisset, of West Yorkshire Police, said each of the district's 241 polling stations had been assessed to anticipate where there might be problems, although the force declined to name the potential hot-spots they had identified.

He said: "The police take a firm stance against anyone who might impact on the ability of an individual to vote freely and communities across the district can be reassured that all allegations of malpractice will be assessed and investigated appropriately."

A number of complaints this year centre around Heaton, with Labour candidate Councillor Mohammad Shabbir - already suspended from the party amid an anti-Semitism row - now facing new allegations.

Bradford Council has received a complaint that Cllr Shabbir, who is chief executive of local mental health charity Sharing Voices, tried to persuade vulnerable service users to support his local election campaign.

A similar allegation was also levelled against Independent councillor for Manningham, Councillor Ishtiaq Ahmed, who also works at Sharing Voices and has been supporting Cllr Shabbir's campaign.

Today, Cllr Shabbir said the accusation was a malicious one.

He said: "I don't work with people on a face-to-face basis. This is absolutely absurd."

And Cllr Ahmed called the accusation "just ridiculous", saying the pair always kept their charity work and councillor roles very separate.

He said: "This is just getting ridiculous now. It is just really political smear campaigning."

Bradford Council's city solicitor Meic Sullivan-Gould said: "Allegations have been received of breaches of the Council's code of conduct by Councillors Shabbir and Ahmed.

"They will be processed after the elections are concluded in accordance with the Council's procedures."

A Yorkshire and the Humber Labour Party spokesman said: “Mohammad Shabbir has already been suspended by the Labour Party. If further allegations are made to us regarding him, they will be investigated as well as the existing allegations he faces.”

Meanwhile, Cllr Shabbir and Cllr Ahmed have gone to the police with complaints that they and their families are being subjected to a campaign of harassment and intimidation in the area.

A police spokesman today confirmed they were reviewing a complaint from Cllr Shabbir to establish if any offences had been committed.