Hope for Nimisha Priya: Kerala nurse’s execution postponed after talks with victim’s family
Sana: The execution of Indian nurse Nimisha Priya, sentenced to death in Yemen for the 2017 murder of a Yemeni national, has been postponed. The decision follows critical talks between Sufi scholars and the victim’s family, initiated through the intervention of Indian Grand Mufti Kanthapuram AP Abubakr Musliyar.
The execution had been scheduled for Wednesday (July 16), but the family of the deceased, Talal Abdu Mahdi, has now agreed to a delay--marking the first major breakthrough in ongoing efforts to secure a pardon.
For years, Talal’s family had refused to accept blood money (diyah) or consider clemency. However, after sustained dialogue led by prominent Sufi scholars, they have shown a willingness to reconsider. According to the Save Nimisha Priya Action Council, the family is now likely to inform the Sana court of their intent to pardon Nimisha in exchange for blood money.
പ്രാർഥനകൾ ഫലം കാണുന്നു. നിമിഷപ്രിയയുടെ വധശിക്ഷ നീട്ടിവെച്ചുകൊണ്ടുള്ള വിധിപ്പകർപ്പ് ഔദ്യോഗികമായി ലഭിച്ചിട്ടുണ്ട്. ഇതിനു വേണ്ടി പ്രവർത്തിച്ച, പ്രാർഥിച്ച എല്ലാവർക്കും അല്ലാഹുവിന്റെ കരുണാകടാക്ഷമുണ്ടാകട്ടെ,
Posted by Sheikh Abubakr Ahmad الشيخ أبوبكر أحمد on Tuesday, July 15, 2025
Discussions are progressing, but the process remains complex. India has no diplomatic ties with Yemen, nor an embassy in the country, due to the ongoing civil conflict. A travel ban for Indian nationals has been in place since 2016, making legal and diplomatic coordination particularly difficult.
Background
Nimisha Priya, a nurse from Kollengode in Palakkad, Kerala, was convicted of murdering her former employer Talal Abdu Mahdi in 2017. The prosecution alleged that she, with the help of a nursing assistant, drugged, killed, and dismembered Talal, hiding his remains in a water tank atop their rented accommodation.
She has been in prison in Sana, the Yemeni capital, since her arrest.