‘Blood money’ negotiation remains the only way to save Nimisha Priya, a Kerala nurse given death sentence in Yemen following the rejection of her appeal by the country’s Supreme Court, her lawyer has said.
Priya was sentenced to death in a 2017 case of murder of a Yemeni national. She filed an appeal against her death sentence before the Yemen’s Supreme Court. However, the top court rejected her plea and now the only option she has to save her life is the “blood money” negotiation with the victim’s family.
According to the Sharia law in Yemen, a victim’s family can allow the release of the convict following “blood money” negotiation. As part of the process, the victim’s family on a sum, known as “blood money”, in exchange of granting mercy. If they agree on “blood money”, the convict will be released and his/her sentence stand cancelled.
However, this won’t be as simple as it looks. There is a travel ban to Yemen and due to this, Indian citizens cannot visit the country without Indian government’s permission. For the “blood money” negotiations to take place, it is important Priya’s mother travel to Yemen.
According to the lawyer, they have sought Delhi High Court’s intervention in the matter, which has directed the centre to decide on the matter within a week.
Now the financial situation of Nimisha’s mother is not good and she has sold her property to negotiate with the victim’s family.
In a TV interview, Nimisha’s lawyer claimed that Nimisha’s sponser in Yemen withheld her passport and tortured her physically and mentally. When the war broke out in 2017, her husband and children left Yemen but she could not return as her passport was with the sponser.
In order to secure the passport, she injected the man with sedatives but an overdose killed him.