 "Nimisha Priya, from Kerala's Palakkad district, was arrested in 2017 and later convicted for the murder of her business partner, Talal Abdo Mahdi. Image Courtesy: X")
Time is running out for Nimisha Priya, a nurse from Kerala, who is on death row in Yemen for the murder of a local man. The woman, in her late 30s, will reportedly be executed on July 16 unless she gets a reprieve.
The Supreme Court on Thursday (July 10) agreed to hear the plea by an organisation, fighting to save the Malayali nurse from the gallows, seeking directions to the Central government to secure her release through diplomatic efforts.
But can the Centre protect Nimisha Priya from the death sentence in Yemen? We take a look.
Why is Nimisha Priya on death row in Yemen?
A native of Palakkad in Kerala, Nimisha Priya moved to Yemen in 2008, when she was just 19 years old, to support her parents, who were daily-wage labourers.
She initially worked at a few clinics before deciding to open her own. But as per Yemeni law, the Malayali nurse needed a local as a partner.
This is where Talal Abdo Mahdi came into the picture and how Nimisha’s ordeal began. She started her clinic in 2015 with the assistance of the Yemeni national.
According to her family, Mahdi harassed Nimisha and physically abused her. He “stole a photograph of Nimisha’s wedding when he visited their home in Kochi and he later manipulated it to claim he was married to Nimisha”, a plea moved by her mother, Prema Kumari, in the Delhi High Court, alleged.
It claimed “he physically tortured her and took away all the revenue collection from the clinic”, adding that their “relationship deteriorated when Nimisha questioned him about embezzlement of funds”.
Mahdi “threatened her with a gun" on several occasions. When Nimisha approached the police in Sanaa, “instead of taking any action against him, they locked her up for six days”, the petition stated.
In July 2017, Nimisha contacted the warden of a jail near her clinic, who suggested she sedate Mahdi and then get her passport. She allegedly tried to sedate Mahdi, with the assistance of her fellow nurse Hannan, but her business partner died due to an overdose. The nurses panicked and chopped Mahdi’s body, later dumping it in a water tank.
The duo was arrested after Mahdi’s body was discovered. Nimisha is currently lodged in Sanaa central jail in the capital of Yemen.
In 2018, the Indian nurse was convicted of murder. She was sentenced to death by a trial court in Sanaa in 2020 and Yemen’s Supreme Judicial Council dismissed her appeal in November 2023.
It, however, gave her the option of paying “ blood money ” to the victim’s family, which would help her escape the death penalty.
In a last-ditch attempt, Nimisha’s mother has been in Yemen since last April to save the nurse from the noose.
Earlier this January, Mahdi al-Mashat, president of the rebel Houthis’ Supreme Political Council, approved her execution.
Calls rise for Indian govt to save Nimisha Priya
Amid reports that Nimisha Priya will be executed in Yemen on July 16, calls have increased from various quarters for the intervention of the Indian government.
The reports surfaced after a statement from Samuel Jerome Bhaskaran, a Yemen-based social worker, who has been nominated by Nimisha’s mother to negotiate with Mahdi’s family to reach a settlement for blood money.
Speaking to India Today TV, the human rights activist said, “The only option available to us is to seek the assistance of the influential people to convince the family to accept the offer.”
He urged the Indian government to reach out to sheikhs and other influential people, who he believed could convince the victim’s family to accept the blood money, or diyah.
Bhaskaran also praised the Indian government for its efforts to save Nimisha Priya from the death penalty. He mentioned the letter sent by the former Minister of State for External Affairs, General VK Singh, which led to the nurse’s trial. “(Otherwise) she would have been executed a long, long time back.”
Meanwhile, two Kerala MPs and leaders of the Communist Party of India (Marxist), or CPI(M), have called on the Centre for urgent diplomatic intervention to save Nimisha’s life.
In his letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, MP K Radhakrishnan urged the Union government to either secure the nurse’s release or seek commutation of her capital punishment. “Nimisha Priya’s mother and family are going through unbearable anguish and continue to pin their hopes on the intervention of the Indian government,” he wrote.
Rajya Sabha MP John Brittas shot off a letter to External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar, urging the government to facilitate talks with the victim’s family, tribal leaders, and other local stakeholders. He underlined that the Save Nimisha Priya Action Council, a citizens’ group advocating for her release, is ready to bear the financial cost of the blood money.
However, Brittas said the group required the government’s help to identify the stakeholders, determine the amount, and ensure the funds are properly transferred.
“As evidence of their commitment, an initial tranche of USD 40,000 was handed over to the Government. Yet, regrettably, there has been no follow-up on the final amount required or any update on negotiation progress, resulting in critical time being lost,” Brittas wrote.
The Indian government’s efforts to save Nimisha are challenging as it does not have formal diplomatic relations with the Houthis , the rebel group controlling large swathes of Yemen.
The Centre previously told the Parliament that it was providing all assistance to the nurse’s family. Sources told Hindustan Times that India has been actively working to prevent Nimisha from the gallows in Yemen. “We have been closely following the matter since she was given the death sentence. We have been in regular touch with Yemeni authorities and her family members and rendered all possible assistance,” an Indian official said.
Meanwhile, the Supreme Court will hear the petition by Save Nimisha Priya Action Council on July 14, seeking directions to the Central government to save her through diplomatic negotiations.
“It is pertinent to mention that strong and timely diplomatic interventions of Indian authorities can only save the life of Ms Nimisha Priya and therefore, facilitations for effective negotiations are highly warranted,” the Council’s petition said.
The apex court has asked the government to apprise it of the actions it took or could take to protect the Malayali nurse.
What about blood money?
The Action Council has ramped up efforts to commence negotiations with the victim’s family and local Yemeni authorities.
The group told The News Minute (TNM) that they offered to pay $1 million (about Rs 8.5 crore). However, the talks hit a roadblock as Mahdi’s family has not communicated the amount they expect as blood money.
The members of the council said they will again attempt to contact the victim’s family to negotiate and finalise the diyah amount.
With inputs from agencies