With just two days remaining before her scheduled execution in Yemen, Kerala nurse Nimisha Priya has received a glimmer of legal hope. The Supreme Court of India is set to hear a plea on Monday seeking diplomatic intervention by the government to prevent her hanging.
A bench of Justices Vikram Nath and Sandeep Mehta is expected to hear the matter. The plea, filed by advocate Subhash Chandran KR, requests the court to direct the Ministry of External Affairs to explore the option of 'blood money', a legal provision under Sharia law, to secure pardon from the victim’s family.
Priya, a 38-year-old nurse from Palakkad district, was sentenced to death in 2020 for the murder of her Yemeni business partner, Talal Abdo Mahdi. The ruling was upheld by the Supreme Judicial Council of the Houthi administration in 2023.
The petition argues that the Indian government should facilitate the payment of compensation to Mahdi’s family to secure her release. “Payment of blood money would influence the victim’s family to pardon the Kerala nurse,” Chandran submitted, adding that Priya’s family has already offered $1 million (approx ₹8.6 crore) as settlement.
Priya has been incarcerated in a prison in Sana’a, the capital of Yemen, which is currently under Houthi control. The absence of formal diplomatic ties between India and the Houthi authorities has significantly complicated attempts to intervene.
Also read: Nimisha Priya case: SC to hear plea on Monday
Having moved to Yemen in 2011 for employment, Priya remained there even after her husband and daughter returned to India in 2014 due to rising civil unrest. In order to open a medical clinic in Yemen, she was required under local law to partner with a Yemeni national — a role Mahdi eventually filled.
However, the partnership reportedly turned abusive. Priya’s family and legal team claim that Mahdi forged documents to declare himself as her husband, withheld her passport, and subjected her to years of physical assault, financial coercion, and verbal threats.
In a desperate bid to escape the country and reclaim her passport, Priya allegedly attempted to sedate Mahdi in 2017. The dosage proved fatal. Prosecutors claimed she later dismembered his body in an attempt to hide the evidence.
Her trial culminated in a death sentence, with little room for appeal under the prevailing system. The urgency surrounding the Supreme Court plea stems from the looming execution date, July 16.
Indian officials have reportedly been in backchannel negotiations, but their efforts remain hamstrung by the complex geopolitical dynamics in Yemen. The Houthi faction, which controls Sana’a and the prison where Priya is held, is not recognised as the legitimate government of Yemen by India or the United Nations.
The legal team and human rights advocates continue to push for a diplomatic breakthrough before the deadline expires. Monday’s hearing may be Priya’s final opportunity for reprieve.
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