The Supreme Court on Thursday agreed to hear on July 14 a petition urging the Centre to use diplomatic channels to save Nimisha Priya from execution in Yemen.
Nimisha Priya, an Indian nurse from Kerala, faces the death penalty for the 2017 murder of her Yemeni business partner, Talal Abdo Mahdi. She has been imprisoned in Yemen for the past three years. Her execution is tentatively scheduled for July 16, following the approval of Yemeni President Rashad al-Alimi.
The Save Nimisha Priya Action Council filed the petition. It was mentioned for urgent listing, after which a Bench of Justices Sudhanshu Dhulia and Joymalya Bagchi agreed to hear the case on July 14. The court instructed the petitioner’s counsel to serve an advance copy to the Attorney General of India.
Blood money under Sharia Law cited in plea
The plea argues that under Sharia law, the death sentence may be waived if diya (blood money) is paid to the victim’s family. This provision remains open, even though Yemen’s Supreme Judicial Council upheld the trial court’s 2020 death verdict in November 2023.
Nimisha Priya, from Kollengode in Palakkad district, had moved to Yemen in 2008 to support her family. She worked as a nurse before opening a clinic. A dispute with Mahdi arose over alleged financial misappropriation. Her family claims she injected him with sedatives to retrieve her passport. However, an overdose caused his death. She was arrested while trying to flee the country.
Mother leads campaign to save her daughter
Priya’s mother, Prema Kumari (57), has been leading a determined campaign to seek clemency. She has even travelled to Sanaa to negotiate the diya amount with Mahdi’s family. The Save Nimisha Priya International Action Council, a collective of NRI social workers active in Yemen, supports her efforts.
The petitioners are appealing for urgent diplomatic intervention to halt the execution and help secure a blood money settlement.
The case has drawn national attention, with calls growing for the Indian government to act before July 16, the date set for Nimisha Priya’s execution.
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