Indy campaigner halts ‘embarrassing plans’ to hold Edinburgh march at same time as official AUOB event

An independence campaigner has halted “highly embarrassing plans” to hold a march through Edinburgh at the same time as an official All Under One Banner (AUOB) event – travelling in the opposite direction.

The second planned march would have taken place at the same time as the first but would have moved in the opposite direction. Picture: John Devlin

Mandeep Singh, who was suspended as operations director for AUOB and is now “expelled”, applied to the city council to hold a demonstration on Saturday 5 October through the centre of the Scottish capital – at the same time as an already-approved event by AUOB organisers.

In a report to councillors, officials warned both events were set to be held at the same time with protesters clashing in opposite directions.

They said: “The planned events will take place at the same time and location, although the route proposed in this application is the opposite direction to the route approved on 19 August 2019.”

The counter protest, submitted under the name AUOB Scotland Ltd, also requested permission to use Princes Street for part of the march, but officials warned that closing off the route would cost up to £15,000 in a payment to Edinburgh Trams, as well as “sever all main east to west and north to south arterial routes” and make it difficult to “respond to emergency situations”. All Under One Banner has blasted the plans by their former colleague. The official AUOB event will meet at Holyrood Park at 1pm.