The family of Surjit Singh Chhokar believe the "only reason" he was killed was because of the colour of his skin.

The 32-year-old died after being attacked in Overtown, North Lanarkshire, on November 4, 1998.

At the High Court in Glasgow earlier this month, a jury found Ronnie Coulter guilty of murdering the waiter following a four-week trial.

Mr Chhokar's sister Manjit Sangha and mother Gurdev spoke to STV News ahead of the verdict, after they have battled for justice for almost 18 years.

Both Police Scotland and the Crown Office said they had "transformed" their approaches to cases in the wake of the murder, while the prosecuting authority stated there was "no evidence in law" to charge Coulter with a racially aggravated killing.

Asked why she thinks they were treated the way they were by the Crown, Ms Sangha told STV News: "Sometimes I feel maybe because they think we are black. Maybe a colour difference because at that time police did say it wasn't racist.

"I think because of our colour they didn't treat us the way they should have. They way they have treated us, it was really, really bad. You don't treat anybody like that."

She added: "People used to come to our shop and say 'your son's been murdered because of colour, He was black'."

"It was because of his colour. I don't know how many houses are in that building in Caplaw Tower (Mr Chhokar's former address). I don't know how many houses were there. Why was it only my brother's who was broken into? Because he was black.

"There was no other reason ... because of his colour, he was murdered. He was the only (black) person living in that area. That's what it was."

There was no mention of a racial motivation for the murder on the indictment faced by Coulter, although a previous inquiry into the handling of the case found institutional racism in the police and procurator fiscal service.

Graeme Pearson MSP, who was formerly assistant chief constable at the then Strathclyde Police, said he believed institutionalised racism was prevalent within the force in 1998.

Asked by STV News if there was institutionalised racism within Strathclyde Police at the time of the murder, Mr Pearson said: "At that time? I think it would be a fool who suggests there was no institutional racism. I think there was a great deal of ignorance in the knowledge that was maintained at the time about how to deal with these matters.

"I think that certainly with the help of people like Aamer Anwar and others, we took big steps in beginning to educate the institution as to the requirements.

"I would suggest, even today, there is still a long way to go - not only for the police service but for all public services and all public life.

"The police service would certainly do things differently today and would have the resources to do the work that's needed.

"Bear in mind also, that for the last 20 years almost, the service has become heavily committed to all sorts of ethnic groups across Scotland and has learned a great deal."

Police Scotland deputy chief constable Ruaraidh Nicolson said their approach to dealing with victims of crime and their families had been "developed significantly" since Mr Chhokar's death.

He said: "The murder of Surjit Singh Chhokar led to significant changes to how the police in Scotland respond to crimes of this nature.

"Recommendations were made following two independent inquiries which followed the two initial trials and these were acted upon by police in conjunction with justice partners and embedded in what we do and how we do it.

"Our understanding of equality and diversity, and of traditions and cultures, as well as our approach to dealing with the families of victims of crime, has developed significantly in the years since the murder of Surjit Singh Chhokar.

"The needs of victims and their families are at the centre of investigations and inquiries consider the full range of circumstances of any crime.

"We continue to review our policies and practice to ensure Police Scotland delivers a service which meets the specific needs of individuals and communities from minority ethnic backgrounds."

In 2001, a report by solicitor Raj Jandoo into the liaison arrangements among the police, the Crown and Mr Chhokar's family found institutional racism was at the heart of Scottish justice authorities.

A separate report by justice of the Supreme Court of Northern Ireland Sir Anthony Campbell did not find institutional prejudice at the procurator fiscal service but did identify numerous failings in the Crown's handling of the case.

Ms Sangha also spoke of how her family was treated by the justice system at the time of her brother's death.

She said : "The Crown at that time treated us really badly. I found out from a relative. He said to me: 'Manjit, do you know the case is starting on Monday?'

"I said I didn't know. I had the shop and I had to ask my customers where the High Court was. I went to the High Court. I asked do you know who is accused? We never knew because nobody informed us.

"Slowly, slowly we got to know it was Ronnie Coulter who was going to be tried. Even at that time, when we saw one person sitting there in the dock - it was only one but police told us there were three.

"I can only say we were treated really badly. It was two weeks after the case for Ronnie Coulter was running and we kept on going every day - my mum, my dad and myself. There was nobody to explain to us what was going on."

In response to the concerns raised by the Chhokar family, the Crown said it had implemented recommendations from the two independent reports into the way the case was handled.

A Crown spokesman said: "The Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service (COPFS) has transformed the way it deals with allegations of racial crimes and how it engages with bereaved families in the 18 years since the murder of Surjit Singh Chhokar.

"We fully implemented the recommendations contained in two independent reports published in 2001 into the way the case was handled, including a complete review of how we manage High Court business and significant improvements to the way we communicate with relatives.

"Colin Boyd QC, the lord advocate at the time the reports were published, apologised to the bereaved relatives, the widow and the partner of Surjit Singh Chokar for the identified failings in the way the case was dealt with by the police and COPFS at the time."

The prosecuting authority also addressed the issue of whether it could have charged Coulter with a racially motivated murder.

A spokesman stated: "COPFS is committed to dealing with racially motivated offences with the utmost sensitivity and takes full account of any cultural or other equality and diversity factors where they are relevant to the circumstances of the case.

"After careful consideration of all the available evidence, Crown counsel concluded that there was no evidence in law to show that the murder of Surjit Singh Chhokar was racially motivated."

Chhokar family lawyer Mr Anwar said outside court after the verdict: "In 2000, I stood on the steps of this court accusing our justice system of acting like a gentleman's colonial club, of being arrogant, unaccountable and institutionally racist but the Chhokar family want to thanks today's prosecutors, Crown Office and Police Scotland for their unwavering commitment t o justice."

The verdict earlier this month signified a semblance of justice for Mr Chhokar's family after a fight that has spanned almost two decades.

During that time, Mr Chhokar's father Darshan has fought, and finally succumbed to, cancer in October last year.

Ms Sangha told STV News the result resembled "a little peace for us".

She added: "And wherever my dad and my brother are, they will be watching. At least we never sat, we kept on fighting and fighting. In the end we got justice.

"After nearly 18 years, we will be able to breathe easily after all these years."