Alexandre Cloutier says SQ monitoring his PQ leadership campaign

The front-runner in the Parti Qubcois leadership race says police are monitoring his campaign after comments made by his closest rival sparked "violent insults" on social media.

AlexandreCloutier, who polls suggest is leading the race, has sparred repeatedly in recent days withJean-FranoisLiseover identity and immigration issues.

Their sparring reached a fever pitch on Friday, whenLisewroteon both Twitter and Facebookthat Cloutier enjoyed the support of controversial Montreal imam and IslamicactivistAdilCharkaoui.

That prompted a series of insults and "hateful comments"directed at Cloutier, he told reporters at a news conference on Saturday.

Cloutier said theSretduQubecis monitoring social media and has asked to be informed ofhis movements. Quebec provincial police declined to comment on the issue, citing their privacy policy.

"In 10 years of political and parliamentary life, it represents the harshest and most ill-founded attack directed my way,"Cloutier said of being linked toCharkaoui.

"I am profoundly saddened that it came from a colleague from my own political party."

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Debating secularism

Shortly after Cloutier's news conference,Lisedenounced thethreats directed at his opponent.

Lise also removed the two social media posts, but has so far refused to apologize for his comments, despite having been called on to do so by Cloutier.

The confrontation brings to a head a series of escalating exchanges betweenthe two leadership candidates.They clashed at a debate earlier in the week while discussing the thorny issue of secularism.

During the debate Cloutier accusedLise of wanting to police religious clothing.Lise replied that Cloutier was "inventing" his policy positions.

Lisethencalled on Thursdayfor a "discussion" about the merits of banning the burkain Quebec.This last proposal broughta swift rebuke fromCloutier'scamp.

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Responding to those criticisms, Lisecirculated a Facebook post on Fridayfrom theCollectif qubcois contre l'islamophobie, an anti-Islamophobia group headed byCharkaoui.

"Cloutier argues for openness and renewal whileLisedescends into an identity debate and the legacy of Drainville'sIslamophobiccharter," the group said in a post Wednesday, referring to thesecular charter tabled in 2013by then democratic institutions minister BernardDrainville.

Pointing to that post, Lisewrote on social media: "AdilCharkaoui publicly supporting Alex, was thatplanned?"

During his news conference on Saturday, Cloutier denied receiving Charkaoui'ssupport or having ever met him. He describedCharkaoui as a "radical imam suspected of having participated in the radicalization of dozens of students at Collge de Maisonneuve."

Charkaouihimself has denied supportingCloutier's campaign.

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A call for calm

The increasingly heated leadership race has begun to alarm party insiders, who worry it will leave the party fragmented and unable to rally against the Liberal government when a leader is finally chosen on Oct. 7.

Interim leaderSylvain Gaudreaulthas been at pains to rein in the attacks the four candidates have directed at each other.

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A report surfaced earlier this week that Gaudreaultmet with leadership candidateMartine Ouellet, who has been polling third behind Liseand Cloutier, to ask her to tone down her critiques of her campaign rivals.

On Friday,Gaudreaultpublicly called onthe candidates to soften their rhetoric.

"The PartiQubcois leadership race is an extraordinary moment for exchanging ideas and positions about the future of Quebec," he wrote in a Facebook post.

"At the same time, I'd like to recall that it's important to conduct these debates with calmness, serenity, respect and in aspirit of collegiality and unity."

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