Kerala CM urges PM Modi to intervene as nurse Nimisha Priya faces execution in Yemen

Dubai: With the clock ticking down to July 16 — the scheduled date for Indian nurse Nimisha Priya’s execution in Yemen — Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan has written to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, urging immediate diplomatic intervention to save her life.

Nimisha, a 34-year-old nurse from Kerala’s Palakkad district, was convicted of the 2017 murder of her Yemeni business partner Talal Abdo Mahdi. Yemen’s top court upheld her death sentence in November 2023. Despite repeated appeals and diplomatic efforts, her execution remains imminent.

“Considering the fact that this is a case deserving sympathy, I appeal to the Hon’ble Prime Minister to take up the matter and intervene with the authorities concerned to save the life of Nimisha Priya,” CM Vijayan stated in his letter, referencing an earlier appeal he made to the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) in March this year.

Amid mounting public pressure, the Supreme Court of India is slated to hear a plea on Monday, July 14, filed by the Save Nimisha Priya International Action Council, a group of NRI social workers and human rights activists advocating for her release.

The plea urges the Centre to urgently use diplomatic channels to halt the execution and negotiate under Sharia law, which allows for ‘diya’ (blood money) to be paid to the victim’s family in lieu of capital punishment.

The Bench of Justices Vikram Nath and Sandeep Mehta will hear the matter. Earlier this week, a Partial Court Working Days Bench led by Justice Sudhanshu Dhulia directed that the matter be urgently listed and the petition be shared with the Attorney General of India.

Nimisha Priya moved to Yemen in 2008 to support her aging parents and worked in private hospitals. In 2015, she opened a clinic in Sanaa with the help of Mahdi, a Yemeni citizen, as local law required national ownership for such ventures.

According to her family and legal advocates, Mahdi allegedly manipulated clinic documents, falsely claimed to be her husband using doctored photos, seized her passport, and subjected her to years of abuse, including drugging, threats at gunpoint, and financial extortion.

When her complaints to Yemeni authorities went ignored — and after a brief jail stint — she allegedly attempted to sedate Mahdi to retrieve her passport and escape. However, an overdose proved fatal, leading to her arrest and conviction for murder in 2018.

“She was tortured, blackmailed, and trapped. Her only goal was to come back home to her daughter and family,” said her mother, Prema Kumari, who has been campaigning tirelessly across India and even travelled to Yemen in a desperate bid to negotiate blood money with Mahdi’s family.

The Indian Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) has repeatedly said it is monitoring the case closely and is in touch with Yemeni authorities. MEA spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal confirmed the government’s commitment, saying, “We are aware of the sentencing of Ms. Nimisha Priya. We understand the family is exploring relevant options. The government is extending all possible help in the matter.”

Despite these assurances, activists argue that time is running out. The situation is further complicated by Yemen’s ongoing civil war, fragile legal systems, and limited diplomatic presence.

Nimisha's case has sparked widespread concern across India, especially in Kerala, where appeals for clemency have come from political, civil society, and human rights groups. Her minor daughter and aging parents remain in India, holding out hope that diplomatic and legal efforts will succeed.

“This isn’t just about saving one life — it’s about how far we’ll go as a nation to protect our citizens, even in the harshest of circumstances,” said a member of the Action Council.

With just days left, all eyes are now on India’s highest court and the Prime Minister's Office, as efforts intensify to prevent what could be the first execution of an Indian woman abroad in recent history.