'Trying at private level': Centre tells SC it can't do much to save Kerala nurse in Yemen
Nimisha Priya, a native of Palakkad in Kerala, was convicted of drugging and murdering her Yemeni business partner, Talal Abdo Mehdi, with the help of another nurse.
- Jul 14, 2025,
- Updated Jul 14, 2025 1:18 PM IST
With just two days left before Kerala nurse Nimisha Priya's scheduled execution in Yemen, the Centre on Monday told the Supreme Court that there is little it can do to intervene in the matter, citing severe diplomatic limitations.
"There’s nothing much the government can do. Looking at the sensitivity of Yemen, it's not diplomatically recognised. Blood money is a private negotiation," Attorney General R Venkataramani told the bench during a hearing on an urgent plea seeking intervention to save Priya's life.
Nimisha Priya, a native of Palakkad in Kerala, was convicted of drugging and murdering her Yemeni business partner, Talal Abdo Mehdi, with the help of another nurse. The two allegedly dismembered the body and disposed of it in an underground tank. Despite her appeals, local courts have upheld the conviction, and her execution is scheduled for July 16.
The government emphasised that it has explored every possible avenue for intervention. "There’s a point till which the government of India can go. We have reached that. Yemen is not like any other part of the world,” the Attorney General said.
He also explained the government's decision to keep the matter low-key. "We didn't want to complicate the situation by going public. We are trying at a private level, some Sheikh, influential people there, all that is being done," Venkataramani added.
Nimisha is currently held in an area under Houthi control, further complicating efforts to communicate or negotiate. The lack of diplomatic recognition of the Houthi regime by India has created a vacuum in official channels, severely limiting the government's ability to assist.
Despite sustained appeals from human rights groups, no progress has been made on arranging a blood money settlement - the only legal route under Yemeni law that could spare her life.
With just two days left before Kerala nurse Nimisha Priya's scheduled execution in Yemen, the Centre on Monday told the Supreme Court that there is little it can do to intervene in the matter, citing severe diplomatic limitations.
"There’s nothing much the government can do. Looking at the sensitivity of Yemen, it's not diplomatically recognised. Blood money is a private negotiation," Attorney General R Venkataramani told the bench during a hearing on an urgent plea seeking intervention to save Priya's life.
Nimisha Priya, a native of Palakkad in Kerala, was convicted of drugging and murdering her Yemeni business partner, Talal Abdo Mehdi, with the help of another nurse. The two allegedly dismembered the body and disposed of it in an underground tank. Despite her appeals, local courts have upheld the conviction, and her execution is scheduled for July 16.
The government emphasised that it has explored every possible avenue for intervention. "There’s a point till which the government of India can go. We have reached that. Yemen is not like any other part of the world,” the Attorney General said.
He also explained the government's decision to keep the matter low-key. "We didn't want to complicate the situation by going public. We are trying at a private level, some Sheikh, influential people there, all that is being done," Venkataramani added.
Nimisha is currently held in an area under Houthi control, further complicating efforts to communicate or negotiate. The lack of diplomatic recognition of the Houthi regime by India has created a vacuum in official channels, severely limiting the government's ability to assist.
Despite sustained appeals from human rights groups, no progress has been made on arranging a blood money settlement - the only legal route under Yemeni law that could spare her life.