Execution of Kerala Nurse Nimisha Priya Postponed in Yemen, Renewing Hopes for Her Release

New Delhi/Thiruvananthapuram, July 15 — Yemeni authorities have postponed the execution of Nimisha Priya, a nurse from Kerala convicted of murdering a Yemeni citizen in 2017, bringing a wave of relief to her family and supporters who are now hopeful that united efforts may ultimately avert her death sentence altogether.

Sources in New Delhi confirmed on Tuesday that Priya’s execution, which was originally scheduled for July 16, has been deferred following sustained diplomatic and humanitarian appeals by the Indian government and other stakeholders.

The 38-year-old nurse, who hails from Kollengode in Kerala’s Palakkad district, has been on death row since 2020 after a Yemeni court found her guilty of the murder. The country’s Supreme Judicial Council dismissed her appeal in November 2023. Priya remains incarcerated in a prison in Sana’a, the Yemeni capital controlled by Iran-backed Houthi forces.

Officials said the Indian government had recently intensified efforts to secure more time for Priya’s family to negotiate a “mutually agreeable” solution with the victim’s family, including the possibility of paying “diyat,” or blood money. However, those discussions have encountered hurdles, sources said.

Priya’s husband, Tomy Thomas, expressed relief over the postponement and thanked everyone involved in supporting the family’s efforts. “We are happy and relieved. I am sure efforts will continue to avert her execution and bring her back safely,” he said, adding that their daughter has been shielded from the ongoing developments.

Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan also welcomed the news, calling the postponement both “comforting and filled with hope.” He credited the intervention of eminent Sunni Muslim scholar Kanthapuram A P Aboobacker Musliyar for contributing significantly to the development. “It is the result of tireless efforts by kind-hearted individuals who embody compassion and brotherhood,” Vijayan said.

Congress MLA Chandy Oommen, who had sought intervention from various influential figures, including Kerala Governor Rajendra Vishwanath Arlekar, acknowledged the governor’s “sincere efforts on humanitarian grounds.”

Followers of Kanthapuram Musliyar remain optimistic that the execution can still be entirely averted. Sayyid Ibrahimul Khaleelul Bukhari Thangal, a close associate of Musliyar, said there are “strong signs the execution may be averted.” Musliyar himself emphasized that he intervened purely on humanitarian grounds, stating, “Islam is a religion that gives utmost importance to humanity, and this is a fact understood and acknowledged by scholars in Yemen.”

Samuel Jerome Baskaran, a member of the Save Nimisha Priya International Action Council, expressed gratitude in a video message for the united efforts being made to save Priya’s life.

Since the beginning of the case, Indian authorities have been providing assistance to Priya and her family. Last year, her mother, Premakumari, traveled to Yemen as part of efforts to secure her daughter’s release.

For now, the postponement offers a glimmer of hope for Nimisha Priya’s family and supporters, who continue to pursue every possible avenue to secure her freedom and safe return to India.