A blind author is taking legal action against Wandsworth Council after Formula E was granted permission to return to Battersea Park this summer.

James Jackson, who writes historical thrillers, has issued a pre-action letter on behalf of the Battersea Park Action Group (BPAG), demanding that the council justifies its actions in law.

March 2: Formula E circuit construction confirmed as event overcomes last hurdle before summer return

January 22: Formula E attracts hundreds of objections as application to build track in Battersea Park goes to consultation

November 27: Formula E protesters declare Battersea Park event a "siege" as 2016 event is approved​

Wandsworth Council signed a five-year deal with Formula E to allow electric car racing in the Grade II listed Battersea Park, with two break-clauses in the contract at years one and three.

Despite huge protests from residents, councillors voted to allow the event to return in June 2016 and 2017, and then granted planning permission for the track.

Mr Jackson said: "The council has paid lip service to local people’s and park users’ views, some of whom do not have the option to go elsewhere. To ignore the laws that protect public open spaces shows a total disregard for the benefits these areas bring to all Londoners and the purposes for which they were established in the first place."

With the backing of the BPAG, Mr Jackson has commenced judicial review proceedings.

A BPAG spokesman said: "The council under statute does not have the right to close all or part of a London park for any more than six consecutive days. By closing large areas of the park for up to nineteen19 days WBC is acting outside the law.

"It has so far chosen not to address any of the key legal issues that apply. The purpose of the submission letter is to make it do so.

"This is not just a fight for public use of Battersea Park but a fight to halt the increasing commercial exploitation of all public parks across Greater London by ensuring that Local Authorities respect these free-to-access open spaces, generating income from them but ensuring that events are appropriate and complementary to the main function of a park.

"Formula E is an extreme example of this type of exploitation and when a council believes it no longer needs to listen to local people and closes large areas of a public park, at a time of year when it is most in demand, it has gone too far."

The group will fund the legal action through crowdfunding.

With a target of £6,000, the group had raised more than half within the first few hours of its launch on Wednesday.

Wandsworth Council has refused to disclose the full value of the Formula E contract but has said it will be able to put £200,000 a year into Battersea Park for every year the race returns.

A council spokesman said: "We are confident that the High Court will confirm that the event is entirely lawful, and that the approval and planning process has been thorough, fair and transparent."