Time ticks for Kerala nurse on death row

THE ONLY LEGAL HOPE LEFT IS A PARDON FROM THE VICTIM'S FAMILY

- BY STEPHEN N. R.

In a desperate bid to save her daughter from the gallows in a foreign country, a mother from Kerala has sold her home, borrowed lakhs, and pleaded with governments and strangers alike — all to bring 34-year-old Nimisha Priya back home alive.

Nimisha, a nurse from Palakkad, is on death row in Sana'a, Yemen, for the 2017 murder of her former business partner, Yemeni national Talal Abdo Mahdi. After years of court proceedings and failed negotiations, Yemen has set her execution for July 16.

Rs1million offered

The only legal hope left now is a pardon from the victim's family in exchange for diyah (blood money), permitted under Yemeni law. Her supporters have offered $1 million, but the victim's family has not responded so far.

Her husband, Tomy Thomas, said, “We haven't received any official communication yet. We only learnt about it through reports in the media and we are waiting.”