A British Muslim group on Friday condemned an alleged "smear" campaign against Sadiq Khan, who was on the verge of becoming London's first Muslim mayor, dpa reported. Shuja Shafi, the head of the Muslim Council of Britain, congratulated Khan on his apparent victory but said it was "unfortunate that a Londoner who happens to be Muslim, and has gone out of his way to repudiate extremists, has nevertheless been smeared with the extremist brush." The Muslim Council of Britain, which aims to represent an estimated 2.7 million British Muslims, was referring to the campaign by Khan's Conservative rival, Zac Goldsmith, who was strongly backed by Prime Minister David Cameron. Goldsmith labelled Khan a "radical," published apparently untrue statements about him in campaign leaflets aimed at voters of South Asian origin, and accused him of associating with extremists.
