The government on Tuesday confirmed that it is aware of the death sentence awarded to Nimisha Priya, an Indian nurse, in Yemen and said it is extending all possible assistance in the matter. In response to media queries, Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said, “We are aware of the sentencing of Ms. Nimisha Priya in Yemen. We understand that the family of Ms. Priya is exploring relevant options. The government is extending all possible help in the matter.”

Nimisha Priya, who has been sentenced to death in Yemen, is a trained nurse and has worked in private hospitals in Yemen for a few years. She was awarded a life sentence in 2020 after being convicted of killing one Talal Abdo Mahdi, who she accused of fraud and abuse, in 2017.

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Her husband and minor daughter returned to India in 2014 because of financial reasons and in the same year, Yemen was gripped by a civil war, and they could not go back as the country stopped issuing new visas. Later in 2015, Nimisha joined hands with Mahdi to set up her clinic in Yemen’s capital city Sana. She sought Mahdi’s support because, under Yemen’s law, only citizens are allowed to set up clinics and business firms. In 2015, Mahdi accompanied Nimisha to Kerala when she came for a month-long holiday. During the visit, he stole a wedding photograph of Nimisha, which he later manipulated to claim that he was married to her.

A plea moved by the mother of Nimisha had stated, “After a while, Nimisha’s clinic began, Mahdi manipulated the ownership documents of the clinic. He also began to take money out of her monthly earnings after telling everyone that Nimisha was his wife Nimisha had alleged that Mahdi had been harassing her and her family for years. Mahdi also seized her passport. This was done to ensure that she would not leave Yemen. He tortured her under the influence of drugs. He threatened her at gunpoint several times. He took all the money from the clinic and her ornaments.”

The plea further alleged that unable to cope with the torture, Nimisha complained to the police in Sana but instead of taking action against Mahdi, the police arrested her and put her in jail for six days. It was further alleged that on her return from jail, the severity of the torture increased manifold.

In July 2017, Nimisha took the help of a warden of a jail located near her clinic. The warden suggested that she should try to sedate him, and then convince him to give her passport. However, sedation did not affect Mahdi, who was a substance abuser. She tried sedating him again, using a stronger sedative in order to retrieve her passport but he died within a few minutes due to a drug overdose.