Execution of Nimisha Priya in Yemen stalled, nothing adverse happening: Centre tells Supreme Court
A new mediator had stepped into the matter, says Union government; the Kerala nurse’s execution, earlier slated for July 16, was postponed following diplomatic interventions by the Indian government and efforts by a prominent Kerala-based Islamic scholar
Updated - October 16, 2025 11:09 pm IST - New Delhi
The top court was hearing a plea seeking direction to the Centre to use diplomatic channels to save the 38-year-old nurse, who was convicted of murdering her Yemeni business partner in 2017. File | Photo: The Hindu
The Supreme Court on Thursday (October 16, 2025) was informed by the Centre that “nothing adverse was happening” in the case of Indian nurse Nimisha Priya, who faces execution in Yemen for murder, and that a new mediator had stepped in to facilitate discussions.
A Bench of Justices Vikram Nath and Sandeep Mehta was hearing a petition filed by the International Action Council, which has been extending legal assistance to Ms. Priya in its efforts to save her life. The execution, earlier slated for July 16, was postponed following diplomatic interventions by the Indian government and efforts by Kanthapuram A.P. Aboobacker Musliyar, a prominent Kerala-based Islamic scholar.
When the Bench asked Attorney-General R. Venkataramani, appearing for the Union government, about the current status of the execution, he responded that “nothing adverse” was taking place and that a new mediator had entered the picture. “
“The only good thing is that nothing adverse is happening, it has been stalled,” Mr. Venkataramani said.
Accordingly, the counsel for the Council requested the Bench to adjourn the matter with liberty to seek an urgent hearing if new developments arose. “The matter pending here also makes a difference,” the counsel submitted, urging that the petition not be disposed of.
The Bench agreed and listed the matter for January 2026, and recorded in its brief order, “It will be open for the parties to apply for early listing in case the situation so demands.”
Ms. Priya, who hails from Palakkad in Kerala, was sentenced to death by a Yemeni trial court in 2020 for the murder of a local man who was her business partner. Her appeals were subsequently dismissed by the appellate courts in Yemen.
“Her only child, a 12-year-old girl, is living in a convent. Her mother is a domestic helper in Ernakulam and her husband is an autorickshaw driver,” the petition stated.
Earlier, the counsel for the petitioner had told the top court that the payment of blood money to the victim’s family, permissible under Sharia law, could be explored as an avenue for relief. He had submitted that the victim’s family might pardon Ms. Priya if blood money were paid.
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