The Supreme Court of Yemen has dismissed an appeal against the death penalty of Nimisha Priya, an Indian nurse from Kerala, who has been imprisoned in Yemen since 2017 for the murder of a Yemeni national. Priya was found guilty of killing Talal Abdo Mahdi by injecting him with sedatives in an attempt to retrieve her passport from him.
In response to a request from Priya’s mother to travel to Yemen, the Delhi High Court has urged the Indian government to make a decision within a week. Priya’s mother had sought permission to travel to Yemen despite a travel ban imposed on Indian nationals since 2017 due to the ongoing civil war in the country.
It has been reported that Priya’s mother wants to travel to Yemen to negotiate “blood money” or compensation with Mahdi’s family in order to secure her daughter’s release. The petitioner’s lawyer argued that the only way to save Priya is through direct negotiations with the victim’s family, which requires her physical presence in Yemen. However, the existing travel ban for Indian nationals poses a barrier.
The Centre’s lawyer informed the high court that a recent notification may relax the travel ban to Yemen, allowing Indian nationals to visit the country for specific reasons and limited durations. The court ordered the Centre to decide on the request within one week.
The “Save Nimisha Priya International Action Council,” a group advocating for Priya’s release, had approached the high court in 2022, urging the government to facilitate diplomatic interventions and negotiations with Mahdi’s family to save Priya’s life by paying blood money in accordance with the law.
This is a developing story, and updates are awaited.
