About 100 people attended a meeting yesterday about the English Defence League protest set to take place in the city centre at the weekend.

The Indian Workers’ Association’s (IWA) Leicestershire branch organised the meeting at the Guru Tegh Bahadur Gurdwara, in Leicester.

The EDL – which says it campaigns against Islamic extremism – is planning a protest in Humberstone Gate on Saturday.

IWA general secretary Sital Singh Gill said: “The English Defence League are organising these kind of events across the country, stirring up racism and provoking violent attacks on Muslim, black and Asian Communities and on mosques and Hindu temples.”

The Home Office is set to make a decision in the next few days as to whether the group should be barred from marching through the city centre.

They cannot be prevented from holding static demonstrations.

Police are urging people not to stage counter-protests.

Members of Leicester Unite Against Fascism spoke about their right to protest peacefully at the meeting yesterday.

Group member Gurjit Dosanjh said: “We believe that we need to build the biggest peaceful protest we can to show them they are not welcome.”

On the BBC’s East Midlands Politics Show yesterday, Leicester West MP Liz Kendall urged people to support a peace vigil the night before the protest and a “celebration” of city diversity the day after.