A BNP candidate has written to a Stoke mosque asking worshippers for their votes.
Mike Coleman, who is standing in Stoke-on-Trent South, said Muslims should vote BNP because it wants UK troops out of Afghanistan.
Other candidates dismissed the call. Liberal Democrat Zulfiqar Ali said the BNP was trying to scare Muslims.
Conservative James Rushton called it a publicity stunt and Labour's Rob Flello said it was not worth talking about.
'Not true'
In his letter Mr Coleman told worshippers at the Glani Noor mosque in Longton that victory at the general election for any of the three main political parties would spell "disaster" for the Muslim world.
"That's where we need a revolution in thinking and approach. I accept I've got to change my view on the Muslim community, they must accept they've got to change their view as well," he told BBC Stoke.
But Mr Ali said: "They're trying to scare them, that all the West is against Islam and Muslims, which is not true.
"All along we have been saying that we should stabilise the situation in Afghanistan and get our troops out, because our troops lives are at risk."
Mr Flello said: "I'd rather talk about the things that matter in Stoke-on-Trent South."
Mr Rushton said he was "totally bemused" by the letter, adding: "I think the letter is a cheap publicity stunt and will have very little impact on anybody's voting intentions."
The candidates announced for Stoke-on-Trent South are: Liberal Democrat: Zulfiqar Ali; UK Independence Party: Mark Barlow; Independent: Mark Breeze; British National Party: Michael Coleman; Labour: Rob Flello; Staffordshire Independent Group: Terry Follows; Conservative: James Rushton.
BBC News
