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The Yemeni government has postponed the execution of Nimisha Priya, the Malayali nurse convicted of murdering a Yemeni citizen. The decision came on Tuesday, July 15, merely a day before it was scheduled to take place.
The decision was preceded by the constant effort of the Save Nimisha Priya Council to speak with the family of the deceased Yemen citizen and negotiate the blood money. Multiple parties, including Indian officials and community leaders, had also made efforts to intervene in the matter.
Kanthapuram AP Aboobacker Musliyar (Sheikh Abubakr Ahmad), general secretary of the Indian Muslim Scholars Association and Samastha Kerala Jem-iyyathul Ulama of AP Sunnis, had also intervened to request the stalling of Nimisha’s execution. Yemeni spiritual leader Habib Umar bin Hafiz, who Kanthapuram is close to, had spoken with Mahdi’s brother and facilitated an opportunity for the Council to continue discussions with the family.
Talking to the media on July 15, Kanthapuram said he intervened in the issue due to humanitarian reasons. He said he discussed the matter with religious scholars in Yemen and the execution has been postponed for the time being to allow time for blood money negotiations. He also added that Puthupally MLA Chandy Oommen will lead further financial efforts.
Meanwhile, Kerala CM Pinarayi Vijayan said that the decision gives great relief and hope. He also congratulated all those who worked to save Nimisha from execution.
The Director General of Prosecution in Yemen had ordered the execution on July 16. The decision came after the Council’s multiple attempts to negotiate the blood money amount with the family of Talal Abdo Mahdi, the deceased Yemeni citizen. Paying the blood money is the only way left to save Nimisha, as the Sharia law in Yemen vests the power to pardon the sentence of a prisoner in the family of the victim.
The council members told TNM that they had offered to pay USD 1 million, that is, approximately Rs 8.5 crore to Talal Abdo Mahdi’s family as blood money. However, the progress in the negotiation was delayed as the family has not yet conveyed to the Council the amount that they expect to receive.
Following the media reports about Nimisha’s scheduled execution, prominent personalities in Kerala, including the Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan, sent letters to Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Minister for External Affairs S Jaishankar, urging them to intervene in this matter.
Nimisha travelled to Yemen along with her husband and daughter in 2008. However, due to financial struggles, her family returned to India in 2014. A year later, in 2015, she started a clinic there with the help of Talal Abdo Mahdi, because a Yemeni citizen’s assistance is mandatory to operate a business in the country.
Talal Abdo Mahdi allegedly subjected her to physical torture and extortion after confiscating her passport. In an alleged attempt to reclaim her passport, Nimisha injected him with a sedative, following which he collapsed and died.
Nimisha was convicted of the murder in August 2017. A Yemeni court sentenced her to death in 2020. On December 30, 2024, Yemeni President Rashad Al-Alimi approved Nimisha’s death sentence.