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A leading imam has defended Boris Johnson over his controversial comments on burkas amid calls for the former foreign secretary to be kicked out of the Tory party.

Mr Johnson is under increasing pressure to apologise after comparing women who wear burkas to letter boxes .

But Dr Taj Hargey, the imam at the Oxford Islamic Congregation, has said the MP should “not apologise for telling the truth”.

In a letter to the Times, he wrote: “The burka and niqab are hideous tribal ninja-like garments that are pre-Islamic, non-Koranic and therefore un-Muslim.

“Although this deliberate identity-concealing contraption is banned at the Kaaba in Mecca it is permitted in Britain, thus precipitating security risks, accelerating vitamin D deficiency, endorsing gender-inequality and inhibiting community cohesion.”

He added that Mr Johnson “did not go far enough” in his column for the Daily Telegraph on Monday, which sparked widespread outcry.

He has refused to bow to pressure despite Conservative Muslim peer Lord Sheikh joining calls for him to apologise.

It comes after Theresa May said Mr Johnson had "obviously offended" some people and added: "I do think that we all have to be very careful about the language and terms we use”.