Nimisha Priya Case: Why Yemen Awarded Death Sentence To Kerala Nurse

Indian nurse Nimisha Priya's death sentence for murdering a Yemeni has been approved by Yemeni President Rashad al-Alimi. Priya, imprisoned since 2017, for killing a Yemeni national.

An Indian nurse from Kerala, Nimisha Priya was sentenced to death by Yemen in 2020.

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The death sentence of an Indian nurse, Nimisha Priya has been approved by the President of Yemen, Rashad al-Alimi, for the murder of a Yemeni national. The nurse, hailing from Kollengode in Kerala's Palakkad district has been serving a prison sentence since 2017. 

She was handed capital punishment by a trial court in 2020 and the verdict was upheld by Yemen's Supreme Judicial Council in November 2023. 

The Ministry of External Affairs said it was aware of the development adding it will extend all possible help in the matter. 

What Is The Murder Case?

The 36-year-old nurse had moved to Yemen in 2008 for the purpose of earning a livelihood. She worked with several hospitals there before opening her own clinic, reported NDTV. 

Since the local law mandates partnering with a local to start a business in Yemen, Nimisha came in contact with Talal Abdo Mahdi in 2014 to set up her new establishment. 

However, things went rough between the two and Nimisha filed a police complaint against Mahdi who was arrested in 2016. But he continued to threaten Nimisha even after his release. 

A dispute arose between the two the following year after she opposed Mahdi's alleged attempts to misappropriate funds. According to Nimisha's family, in a bid to retrieve her confiscated passport, she allegedly injected Mahdi with sedatives. 

However, an overdose led to his death. 

She tried to flee the country but was arrested and convicted of murder in 2018. In 2020, she was sentenced to death by a trial court in Sanaa and the verdict was upheld by Yemen's Supreme Judicial Council in November 2023. 

The judicial council, though, left open the option of blood money, which is the compensation to be decided by the victim's family. 

Nimisha's family approached the Yemeni Supreme Court against the trial court order but their appeal was rejected in 2023.