Nimisha Priya execution: Supreme Court tells govt to decide on travel request for blood money talks to Yemen

The Supreme Court on Friday asked the central government to respond to a request asking for permission to travel to Yemen to help stop the hanging of Kerala nurse Nimisha Priya. A group called the ‘Save Nimisha Priya Action Council’ had filed a petition requesting the court to tell the Ministry of External Affairs to use diplomatic efforts to save Nimisha from being executed.

Senior lawyer R. Basant, who spoke for the group, said that although Nimisha’s hanging, which was originally planned for July 16, has been put on hold for now and they still need the government’s permission to go to Yemen. The purpose of the visit is to try and get forgiveness from the family of Talal Abdo Mahdi, the man who was allegedly killed by Nimisha in 2017.

What Save Nimisha Priya Action Council told the Supreme Court?

Senior lawyer R. Basant told the Supreme Court that Yemen is not a country where people can freely travel because there is a ban unless the Indian government gives special permission to travel. He asked the court to allow 2–3 people from the petitioner group and a representative of a Kerala Islamic cleric to go to Yemen.

However, the bench led by Justice Vikram Nath said it would not pass any order to the government. Instead, it told the group to directly ask the central government for travel permission. The bench said in its order, “Petitioner wishes to make some representation to the government, which they are free to move. And once that representation is made, the government would consider it on its own merits.”

Basant also requested that someone from the government join them to help talk to the victim’s family. He said they hoped to offer “blood money” (called diya), a form of compensation under Islamic law that is sometimes used to avoid the death penalty.

But Attorney General R. Venkataramani, the top legal officer of the central government, said he could not make any such promise. He added, “We don’t want anything to go wrong. Our goal is to bring the woman back safely.”

Meanwhile, Abdelfattah Mehdi, brother of the deceased, has asserted that there can be no pardon for the crime, reiterating that Nimisha Priya has to be executed.

The court will hear the matter again on August 14.

Nimisha Priya’s execution: MEA’s response

The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said that the Indian government is doing everything it can to help in the case of Nimisha Priya. MEA spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said the matter is very sensitive, and India is also working with some friendly countries to offer full support.

Speaking at a media briefing in New Delhi, Jaiswal explained that the government has provided legal help, appointed a lawyer, and arranged regular consular visits for Nimisha’s family. He added that they are in constant contact with both the local authorities in Yemen and the family members to try and resolve the issue.

Nimisha Priya’s mother, 57-year-old Prema Kumari, has been working hard to save her daughter from the death penalty. She even travelled to Yemen’s capital, Sanaa, to try and reach an agreement with the victim’s family by offering blood money, which is sometimes accepted in such cases under Islamic law. Her efforts have been supported by the Save Nimisha Priya International Action Council, a group of NRI social workers working in Yemen.

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