A SCOTTISH Government minister has called for an investigation into how a group of far-right activists secured the British Army bibles they handed out during an 'invasion' of mosques at the weekend.

Representatives of Britain First, whose leadership are former members of the British National Party and which is contesting this month's European elections, carried out what they called a 'Christian crusade', handing out leaflets and bibles to Muslim worshippers.

The group, which handed out the literature at Glasgow Central Mosque and a mosque in Cumbernauld, Lanarkshire, wore matching flat caps and green jackets embossed with the party logo, which features a crown.

The group, which is headed by prominent Belfast-based protester Jim Dowson, has boasted on its website of handing out "Muslim grooming leaflets and British Army bibles".

Now, Glasgow MSP and Scotland's minister for external affairs and international development Humza Yousaf has called on the UK's armed forces minister to find out where the bibles came from.

Representatives of the Central Mosque have told The Herald they believed the Britain First team were from the British Army and did not realise their mistake until the group had left.

In a letter to Mark Francois MP, Mr Yousaf said he had 'no doubt' the minister "would be concerned that individuals may well be impersonating them with the potential of causing reputational damage" and called for an investigation to be carried out "to ascertain how such a bigoted organisation has managed to obtain military bibles and impersonate armed personnel".

Central Mosque secretary Nabeel Shaikh said: "We get police and emergency services to the mosque all the time. We've an open-door policy. Those who spoke with these guys told them they agreed with their comments on sexual grooming, how Islam was deeply opposed to it but found it curious as to why the Army was here telling us this.

"Their dress was military style and they gave out Army bibles. They left when the committee members continued to agree with them and it was only when they left and the guys had a closer look at the leaflets they realised this definitely was not the type of thing the Army would deliver to a mosque."

Asked where the bibles might have come from, Mr Dowson, Britain First's European elections candidate for Scotland, said: "I've no idea.

"We buy bibles all the time, sometimes about 2,000 at a time. We must have got them cheap.

"I don't know how the people in the mosque got the impression [we were from the Army]. We've big badges on the jackets and were wearing jeans."