However, doubts have been raised as to the intention of the leaflets. Senior Cheetham Hill councillor Naeem Hassan told the Manchester Evening News: “This has got to be a scam. I’m a Muslim and the Muslim law says that if you live in a country that is not Muslim, which is England, you respect the law of the land.

“In our house in Pakistan we keep dogs and many of my friends here have dogs. We keep ourselves clean and away from animals before prayer but Muslim people do keep dogs in their homes.

“I think this is somebody trying to divide the community. I do not see any problems at all. I want to say to people to just ignore this.

“Nobody in 30 years has ever raised any issue about this with me and we do not impose our beliefs on anyone.”

A website and Facebook page associated with the campaign were set up earlier this year, although neither feature any contact details or information regarding who is behind the leaflets.