She told the Daily Mail: “We are in a hard situation because we still have to support him, but at the same time our hearts are broken and I’m very sorry for what’s happened.

Mrs Kaur did not attempt to excuse her grandson’s actions, describing him as a “difficult boy”, while accepting his guilt for the murder of Mr Nowak with a Sikh ceremonial blade in Southampton on December 3 last year.

“He’s done a very bad thing – there’s no argument over that,” she added.

Following Digwa’s conviction and the release of harrowing police body cam footage, violent protests erupted in Southampton, with some demonstrators making their way to the street where the Digwa family lives.

Mrs Kaur said her son, Moga, and grandson, Gurpreet, have fled their home and are now staying with relatives in an undisclosed location.

“It’s not safe for them to be in their home because it was targeted the other night and it’s only a matter of time before it is attacked again,” she said.

Vickrum Digwa stabbed Henry Nowak five times with a 21-centimetre blade | PA

Mrs Kaur remains at her central Southampton home, despite receiving threats, and claimed the rest of the family would be unlikely to ever return to the city.

“We’re all living in fear because we’ve also had some threats and are worried that we might also get attacked. But we’ve been in this city a long time, our whole extended family is here, and we don’t have anywhere else to go.”

In defence of her daughter-in-law Kiran Kaur, 52, who concealed the knife used to kill Mr Nowak at her son’s request, Mrs Kaur said “she only did what any mother would have done”.

The mother is currently on remand awaiting sentencing later this month after being found guilty of assisting a murderer.

The grandmother described Kiran as a devoted Sikh and dedicated housewife who concentrated entirely on bringing up her children in a traditional household. “Now she’s going to be punished for this”, she added.

The Digwa family claims to belong to the Nihangs – an ancient Sikh warrior order established some 500 years ago to defend the faith and its places of worship.

Members of this sect, sometimes called the “army of Sikhism”, are renowned for their expertise with swords, knives, spears and iron chains. They also pride themselves on being the “commandos” of their religion.

Mrs Kaur said most male relatives, including Digwa’s father and brother, belong to this order.

The killer’s mother, Kirun Kaur, also received a guilty verdict for assisting a defendant by removing the weapon from the scene

 | CPS

“It’s an important part of our faith and it’s something that I’m proud of,” she said, insisting her grandson had betrayed these traditions.

“These weapons are not meant to be used on the innocent, so something has gone wrong.”

Digwa, 23, was described in court as “weapons obsessed”, possessing numerous illegal items alongside his ceremonial kirpans.

Fellow Nihangs have distanced themselves from Digwa, with one member of the order who knew him branding him a “fraud”.

Jas Singh, of Sikh Federation UK, said: “He is a fake Nihang. Yes, weapons are important to us, and we learn to use them, but it is clearly stipulated that they can only be used to protect the faith, uphold justice and defend the innocent, not kill them.

“The Nihangs are an upright and noble people, but Digwa was none of these things. He was a common thug and yob, no different to any other you commonly see on the streets of Britain.”

Worshippers at the Gurdwara Khalsa Darbar, where Digwa taught martial arts, were equally scathing.

One attendee said: “A lot of people in this area didn’t like him or some of his family and we’ll be glad to see the back of them because they have disgraced us all.