Concerns have been raised over an agreement signed by the mayor of Bolton during a trip to Kashmir.

A video circulating online shows the first citizen, Cllr Mohammed Ayub, signing an official document, with a sign in the background that says, “Twin city, memorandum signing ceremony”.

Cllr Nick Peel, leader of the Bolton Council ruling Labour Party, said Cllr Ayub signed a friendship agreement between the two places - and described it as something positive.

He stressed that the trip had not been funded by the council.

Cllr Peel said that he believes that there may be a mistranslation with the signs that state twin city.

But the leader of Bolton Lib-Dem Group and the leader of the Conservatives in Bolton have raised concerns that they were unaware an agreement was being signed, adding they do not know what it entails.

Cllr Roger Hayes, leader of the Lib-Dems, said he found out about the trip via an Freedom of Information request that had been submitted.

Cllr Hayes said: “We are going to ask for an urgent investigation.

"I am trying to find out the facts.

“I don’t think he has the power without the council to sign an agreement.

“There is also concern over the twin city sign in one of the videos.

“I am not saying whether it is a good thing or a bad thing, but we should have known about it in advance.”

Conservative leader Cllr Martyn Cox said: "It has come to the attention of the Conservative group through a social media post that Bolton has not only ‘become a city’ but it has been twinned with somewhere in Kashmir, Pakistan seemingly overnight.

"Bolton’s Labour leadership has questions to answer about how this happened."

Cllr Cox questioned why the agreement was signed with a place "on the other side of the world" adding which "no other councillor or citizen of the town is aware of, with a village with no obvious connection to the town?"

The Bolton News: Cllr Mohammed Ayub

Cllr Cox said: "What does this agreement mean?

"What obligations does it put on the town?

"Where is the press release announcing this new international agreement?

"Why has neither the cabinet nor the full council sanctioned this agreement?"

Cllr Peel defended the mayor, who is a member of his party.

He said: “I think if there is a mayor in Bolton who is not from here, then it is quite a wonderful thing to sign a friendship agreement with where you are born, and it celebrates the diversity of Bolton even more.

“The mayor discussed it with me, and I don’t see a problem with it and think it’s a really positive thing to do.

“It’s not a twin agreement, it shows that our towns are friends.

“If it was a cultural exchange with schools then it would be brilliant, but there is nothing planned there.

“There is no question about any council funding being used for the trip, and it is a self-funded holiday.”

Cllr Peel also says that Cllr Martin Donaghy also signed a friendship agreement in Northern Ireland to represent his place of birth.

Cllr Peel added: “It’s a friendship agreement between the mayor of one town and another.

“It is very informal and there is no agenda.”

Horwich and Blackrod First Independents Leader Cllr David Grant has said that the main concern is over the signage in the video, and that they are unaware of what the agreement contains.

Cllr Grant said: “Our group have been sent details of a video in where the Mayor of Bolton (Cllr. Ayub) appears to be signing agreements.

"Whilst we have not done a translation, behind him is a very clear sign which states, “City Twinning.

“As far as we are aware the council has not approved nor agreed to this, and this could have very serious implications regardless of whether it is formal or informal.

“By extension anything the mayor does is, as the chair and representative of the council and by association deemed the councillors have agreed to this which we clearly have not.”

Cll Ayub was born in the small village of Ghora, Kotli, Azad Kashmir, which is a region administered by Pakistan as a nominally self-governing entity. 

He came to live in Bolton in 1972 at the age 15.

Cllr Ayub was unavailable for comment.