Police have dropped their investigation after a former Labour Party manager tweeted he would “load the revolver” if the Tower Hamlets Mayor was Labour’s candidate for the 2016 London Mayoral election.

After suggestions of a ticket featuring Mayor Lutfur Rahman were rebuffed, Rob Marchant said on social networking site Twitter: “Phew. If not I will load the revolver and we can all take turns.”

He added: “Ah. [makes mental note to keep revolver well cleaned and oiled].”

The tweets were reported by Mayor Rahman, with Mr Marchant insisting they inferred self-harm rather than a threat.

After police dropped enquiries, Mr Marchant wrote: “…if the reaction of calling the police was one of genuine discomfort due to misunderstanding the nature of the joke, then I regret any such discomfort caused.

“This was a joke between friends, and it was on us, not you, Lutfur”, he added.

Mayor Rahman then faced criticism for having reported the remarks to police.

But he responded: “I frequently receive abuse and threats — mainly from racist extremists of the EDL-ilk.

“That and the sheer violence of Marchant’s language in discussing me should explain why I acted when the tweets were drawn to my attention”, he concluded.