Daijiworld Media Network - New Delhi
New Delhi, Oct 16: The Supreme Court was informed on Thursday, October 16 that the execution of Indian nurse Nimisha Priya, sentenced to death in Yemen for the 2017 murder of her Yemeni business partner, has been temporarily stayed.
Appearing for the Union government, attorney general R Venkataramani told a bench comprising justices Vikram Nath and Sandeep Mehta that a new mediator had taken charge of negotiations in the matter. “The only good thing is that nothing adverse has happened,” he said.
The court was hearing a plea filed by the ‘Save Nimisha Priya International Action Council’, which has been supporting efforts to save the 38-year-old nurse from execution. The petitioner’s counsel confirmed that the execution had been stayed for now and requested that the case be adjourned.
The bench directed that the matter be listed in January 2026, adding that either party could apply for an early hearing if circumstances warranted.
Priya, who hails from Palakkad in Kerala, was convicted in 2017 and sentenced to death in 2020. Her final appeal was dismissed in 2023, and she remains imprisoned in Yemen’s capital, Sana’a.
Earlier, the petitioner’s counsel had informed the court that Priya’s mother had travelled to Yemen—after receiving clearance from the Delhi High Court—to negotiate with the victim’s family and explore the possibility of paying “blood money” under Sharia law, which could lead to a pardon.
The Union government had previously stated that it was in communication with Yemeni authorities and friendly nations to seek a “mutually agreeable solution” to secure Priya’s release.
Background
Nimisha Priya, a trained nurse from Kerala, had been working in Yemen for several years. In 2017, she was accused of killing her Yemeni business partner, reportedly after disputes over business and personal matters. She was convicted of murder by a Yemeni court and sentenced to death in 2020.
Her case has drawn widespread attention from human rights activists, Indian diaspora groups, and international organisations. The ‘Save Nimisha Priya International Action Council’ has been spearheading efforts to secure her release through diplomatic and humanitarian channels, while also raising funds to pay the blood money that could help avert her execution.