Nimisha Priya, On Death Row In Yemen, May Be Forgiven For Murder If...

(MENAFN- Live Mint) Nimisha Priya, a resident of Kerala, was handed capital punishment for allegedly murdering a Yemeni citizen, Talal-Abdo-Mohatti. The Ministry of External Affairs said on Tuesday that it is extending all possible help to explore relevant options in the case of an Indian nurse facing a death sentence in Yemen.

“We are aware of the sentencing of Ms. Nimisha Priya in Yemen. We understand that the family of Priya is exploring relevant options,” said the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) in a statement on Tuesday.“The government is extending all possible help in the matter,” he added.

Nimisha Priya's lawyer, Subhash Chandran, said that if the family of the victim (Yemeni national) is ready to accept the "blood money" and "pardon" Nimisha Priya, "her life will be saved".

Chandran said Sharia Law prevails in Yemen. Under Islamic law, the payment of blood money (diya) is the principal punishment for unintentional killing and culpable homicide . Diya can also be paid in murder cases in which the relatives of the victim waive their right to qiṣāṣ and choose to receive blood money. Qiṣāṣ is the principal punishment for murder.

In November 2023, a $40,000 payment was made to get negotiations started on Nimisha Priya's behalf. Her family will likely have to pay close to $400,000 more in order to waive the death penalty, according to The Indian Express.

The lawyer said an "immediate intervention" by the Indian government in the matter is crucial.“We need their immediate intervention. We are ready to pay the amount. We don't need a single penny from the government. We are just requesting them to facilitate the negotiation as we are unable to travel to Yemen.”

The council (SNPIAC) will take care of the financial aspects of arranging the blood money,” Chandran told NDTV earlier.

Subhash Chandran said Nimisha was convicted for the murder of a Yemeni national, Mohatti.“He was her sponsor, and during the time of the Yemen war, she was tortured by her sponsor,” he said.“She wanted to get her passport back and run away to save her life, so she tried to sedate him. Unfortunately, there was an overdose, and he died,” the lawyer added.

Nimisha Priya, who was sentenced to death in Yemen, is a trained nurse and worked in private hospitals in Yemen for a few years.

Her husband and minor daughter returned to India in 2014 because of financial reasons, and in that same year, Yemen was gripped by civil war, and they could not go back as the country stopped issuing new visas.

Later, in 2015, Nimisha joined hands with a Mahdi to set up her clinic in Yemen's capital city, Sana. She sought Mahdi's support because, under Yemen's law, only nationals are allowed to set up clinics and business firms. In 2015, Mahdi accompanied Nimisha Priya to Kerala when she came for a month-long holiday. During the visit, he stole a wedding photograph of Nimisha, which he later manipulated to claim that he was married to her.

A plea moved by the mother of Nimisha Priya stated,“After a while, Nimisha's clinic began, Mahdi manipulated the ownership documents of the clinic. He also began to take money out of her monthly earnings after telling everyone that Nimisha was his wife. Nimisha had alleged that Mahdi had been harassing her and her family for years.”

"Mahdi also seized her passport. This was done to ensure that she would not leave Yemen . He tortured her under the influence of drugs. He threatened her at gunpoint several times. He took all the money from the clinic and her ornaments," the plea claimed.

The plea further alleged that unable to cope with the torture, Nimisha complained to the police in Sana, but instead of taking action against Mahdi, the police arrested her and put her in jail for six days. It was further alleged that on her return from jail, the severity of the torture increased manifold.

In July 2017, Nimisha received the help of a warden from a jail located near her clinic. The warden suggested that she should try to sedate him and then convince him to give her passport. However, sedation did not affect Mahdi, who was a substance abuser. She tried sedating him again, using a stronger sedative in order to retrieve her passport, but he died within a few minutes due to a drug overdose.

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