NEW DELHI: The execution of Kerala nurse Nimisha Priya, scheduled for July 16 in Yemen, has been postponed. She was convicted of murdering her Yemeni business partner in 2017.“GoI, which has since the beginning of the case been rendering all possible assistance in the matter, has made concerted efforts in recent days to seek more time for the family of Ms. Nimishapriya to reach a mutually agreeable solution with the other party,” sources told TOI.Also read: Nimisha Priya’s execution postponed – what was the case“Despite the sensitivities involved, Indian officials have been in regular touch with the local jail authorities and the prosecutor’s office, leading to securing this postponement,” the sources further said.
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The move follows sustained appeals and diplomatic interventions, with the Centre confirming on Monday it was doing “utmost possible” to save the 38-year-old from Palakkad, Kerala.Priya, convicted of murdering her Yemeni business partner Talal Abdo Mahdi in 2017, has been on death row since 2020. Yemen’s Supreme Judicial Council upheld her sentence in November 2023. She remains imprisoned in Sanaa, the capital, which is under Houthi control and outside formal diplomatic reach.Attorney General R Venkataramani informed the Supreme Court on Monday that the government had “engaged with some sheikhs who are very influential people there” and had written to the local public prosecutor to request a temporary suspension of the execution. However, he added that the situation remained “very complex” given the lack of diplomatic recognition of the Houthi regime.“There is a point up to which the Government of India can go and we have reached that point,” he said, cautioning against further public pressure. “Probably we got some kind of an informal communication saying probably the execution is kept under abeyance. We don’t know how far to believe that.”Priya’s legal team, supported by the NGO ‘Save Nimisha Priya – International Action Council’, told the court that her mother and a social worker are currently in Yemen negotiating with Mahdi’s family to accept blood money—a compensation recognised under Sharia law. The group has not sought government funding and says it will raise the funds independently.The court adjourned the matter to July 18, asking both sides to report on the status of the negotiations.Priya had reportedly killed Mahdi, who she said had confiscated her passport and abused her. Court documents allege she sedated him before dismembering the body with the help of a local woman and disposing of it in a water tank.
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