NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court on Thursday agreed to hear a plea seeking a direction to the Centre to use diplomatic channels to make an attempt to save an Indian nurse, who is likely to be executed in Yemen on July 16 for murder charges.
A bench of Justices Sudhanshu Dhulia and Joymalya Bagchi listed the matter for hearing on July 14 after advocate Subhash Chandran KR said diplomatic channels need to be explored at the earliest.
He submitted that payment of blood money to the family of the deceased permissible under Sharia law can be explored.
The family of the deceased may pardon the Kerala nurse if blood money is paid, he submitted.
The bench asked the counsel to serve the copy of the petition to the Attorney General and sought his assistance.
Meanwhile, PDP chief Mehbooba Mufti on Thursday sought External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar's intervention to save Nimisha Priya.
The former chief minister of J-K also appealed to people to donate generously for raising blood money needed for getting clemency for Nimisha Priya.
In a post on X, Mehbooba said, "Nimisha Priya an Indian nurse is facing execution in Yemen on 16th July. She was allegedly subjected to severe abuse and in an attempt to defend her herself a man died".
She said Priya now faces the death penalty, and as per the Yemeni law, clemency is possible only through blood money.
"Request @DrSJaishankar to intervene immediately. Unfortunately till now the required funds and diplomatic pressure are both inadequate," Mehbooba said.
The former chief minister of the erstwhile state of J-K urgently appealed to everyone, especially women, to donate generously so that the family of the nurse can pay it for clemency.
Communist Party of India MP P Sandosh Kumar also has written to External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar urging urgent intervention to halt Nimisha Priya’s execution in Yemen.
In his letter, the Rajya Sabha member stressed the humanitarian dimensions of the case and appealed to the Centre to use all diplomatic and legal avenues, including Yemen’s provision for diyat (blood money), to seek a stay on the execution. He said the CPI continues to stand with Priya’s family in their appeal for justice.
Nimisha Priya, 38, 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.
The plea has been filed by an organisation 'Save Nimisha Priya International Action Council' which extends legal support to assist Nimishapriya.
The plea cited a media report that stated that the tentative date for execution of Nimishapriya has been fixed as July 16 by the Yemeni administration.
(With inputs from Online Desk)
