Brother of Yemeni murder victim demands new execution date for Indian nurse

Talal Mahdi’s relatives reject spiritual leader’s claim that Nimisha Priya’s death sentence has been revoked

Nimisha Priya, an Indian nurse from southern Kerala state, faces the death penalty for the murder of a Yemeni national.

The family of Yemeni citizen Talal Mahdi have urged authorities to expedite the execution of an Indian nurse convicted of his murder by setting a new date.

Nimisha Priya, a nurse from Kerala state, was granted a reprieve by Yemeni authorities when her execution date scheduled for July 16 at the Central Prison Square in Sanaa was postponed.

Abdel Fattah Mahdi, Talal's brother, has also denied reports in the Indian media that an Indian spiritual leader won the family’s forgiveness to revoke the death penalty.

“The execution has become mandatory by law and binding on all parties without any delay,” said a letter to Yemen’s Public Prosecution signed by Abdel Mahdi on behalf of Mr Mahdi’s close relatives.

The plea called for the public prosecution to “expedite the implementation of the death penalty against the convicted Indian national Nimisha Priya”.

In the letter, the elder Mr Mahdi states that all approvals were obtained as per the final judgments in 2023, including ratification by Yemen’s President and the Attorney General’s order in 2024.

“The crime committed was beyond all bounds of humanity,” the family said in the petition posted by Mr Mahdi on Facebook. “We urgently request your excellency to set a new date for the execution of the death sentence, which we firmly demand as our legitimate right, especially since we, the victim’s family, have lost our loved one to an atrocious crime.”

The family said all efforts at reconciliation had been exhausted. “All attempts to negotiate and mediate have reached a dead end and we, the family of the victim, are unable to reach any compromise with the other party,” the plea said.

Family demands retribution

The family denied a claim publicised in the Indian media made by Kanthapuram AP Aboobacker Musliyar, a prominent Sunni leader also known as the Grand Mufti of India.

The Grand Mufti’s office said that, after “high-level meetings” in Sanaa, the death sentence was officially cancelled.

But the elder Mr Mahdi rejected this as “categorically untrue”. He denied that close family members had met or spoken to the cleric, accepted reconciliation and that the death sentence was cancelled.

“We have not spoken to or negotiated with anyone, near or far, about reconciliation in the case of the Indian murderer. None whatsoever,” he said.

Yemeni national Talal Mahdi was killed in 2017 by an Indian nurse in Sanaa and his family have asked for justice and an execution date to be set after a stay was granted this week. Photo: Abdel Fattah Mahdi/Facebook

“And we will not allow anyone to impose any discussion or compromise at the expense of our blood and our indisputable right to have qisas (retribution) implemented.”

Asking for justice and retribution for the murder of his younger sibling, Mr Mahdi said: “Religion cannot serve as a pretext for pardon or a cover for the crime’s ugliness.”

He also pointed out that, as per Islamic Sharia and the Yemeni constitution, “honouring the victim’s family, recognising their pain, and upholding their right to see God’s law enforced are obligations”.

“Guaranteeing these rights is among the highest principles of justice,” he added.

Mr Mahdi spoke out against emotional propaganda and against the spiritual leader’s claims of mercy “at the expense of a pure body unjustly slaughtered, dismembered, and thrown into a water tank as if it were nothing”.

“Talal’s blood will not become a bargaining chip in the marketplace of negotiations, nor a bridge for those trading in religion or personal interests,” he said. “And let it be crystal clear: If any decision is to be made, it is ours to make. No one will override our right in the name of religion or mercy.”

Critical phase

Earlier, Yemen’s prosecution authority had said the execution of Ms Priya would be “postponed until a new date is announced”.

This came after a petition from her mother Prema Kumari, who is in Sanaa to support the negotiations, and a request from the Indian government to stay the execution.

The Indian family had offered $1 million in diya or blood money as compensation for Mr Mahdi’s death. The funds were raised by Indians across the world, including expats in the UAE.

Mr Mahdi has urged the public to remember how his family has suffered after the Indian nurse drugged his brother, cut his body into pieces, and hid it in plastic bags inside an underground tank.

Ms Priya’s supporters have asked for forgiveness and pardon, saying she had injected Mr Mahdi with sedatives to retrieve her passport that he had seized and that he had died of an accidental overdose.

“Our work continues to save Nimisha’s life and we must also be sensitive to Talal’s family,” Ms Deepa Joseph, a lawyer in India and vice-chairwoman of the Save Nimisha Priya International Action Council, told The National.

“What we know of the current situation is that Talal’s family has said they have not spoken to the grand mufti and the family has moved the prosecutors to speed up the process to execute Nimisha.

“We ask that all parties are restrained as this is a critical phase.”