The Supreme Court was on Friday informed that the execution of Indian nurse Nimisha Priya, who is on death row for murder in Yemen, has been stayed. The Apex court has posted the matter for next hearing on August 14.
Attorney General R Venkataramani, appearing for the Centre, told a bench of Justices Vikram Nath and Sandeep Mehta that "efforts are on" in the matter. He assured the court that the government is actively working to ensure Priya's safe return.
The top law officer said the government wants Priya to come back safely."They (government) are taking good care of whatever is possible," the bench observed.The counsel appearing for the petitioner said they have to first get pardon and then the issue of "blood money" would come.
The petitioner informed the court that the execution has been postponed.The bench posted the matter for further hearing on August 14. The apex court was hearing a plea seeking a direction to the Centre to use diplomatic channels to save Priya, 38, facing execution in Yemen.
The execution was earlier scheduled for July 16.The Ministry of External Affairs is working to support Nimisha Priya, an Indian nurse on death row in Yemen, by appointing a lawyer to assist her family with legal processes and exploring options for clemency under Sharia law.
Supreme Court has granted permission to the petitioner organisation that has moved the Supreme Court seeking the Indian government’s intervention to save Nimisha Priya, an Indian facing the death row in Yemen, in a murder case, to approach the Indian government.
During the hearing, the counsel for the Save Nimisha Priya International Action Council also requested permission to travel to Yemen to initiate negotiations with the family of the murder victim.
The Attorney General of India stated that the Indian government wants Priya to come out (of the Yemeni death row) safely. A bench of Justices Vikram Nath and Sandeep Mehta granted liberty to the petitioner organisation to approach the Indian government in this regard by filing a representation. The Court posted the matter for further hearing on August 14.
“They (government) are taking good care of whatever is possible,” the bench observed.The counsel appearing for the petitioner said they have to first get pardon and then the issue of "blood money" would come."We want this woman to come back safely," the Centre stated during the hearing.
Meanwhile, the petitioner told the court that Nimisha Priya's execution has been temporarily postponed. The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said that it is actively working to support Nimisha Priya, an Indian nurse on death row in Yemen. The MEA has appointed a lawyer to assist Priya's family in navigating the complex legal process in Yemen. This includes exploring options for clemency or pardon under Sharia law.
Priya, a nurse from Palakkad district of Kerala, was convicted of murdering her Yemeni business partner in 2017. She was sentenced to death in 2020, and her final appeal was rejected in 2023. She is currently imprisoned in a jail in Sana'a, the capital of Yemen.
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