Nimisha Priya case: Necessary steps for filing appeal will be initiated, Centre informs Delhi HC

The Central government on Tuesday informed the Delhi High Court that bearing in mind the convict, Nimisha Priya, is an Indian national, the government shall take all proactive steps to institute an appeal before the next appellate forum in accordance with Yemen's prevalent law in the case.

Advocate Anurag Ahluwalia who appeared for the Central government further apprised the court that the consul present in Yemen shall extend all cooperation and facilitate the travel of the petitioner.

The court of Justice Yashwant Varma on Tuesday recorded the undertakings advanced by the Central government and disposed of the petition. Advocate Subhash Chandran KR appeared for the petitioner organization Save Nimisha Priya-International Action Council.

Accordingly, the concerned ministry is requested to duly pursue the remedy against the order of conviction as affirmed by the court of appeal. The High Court further requested the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) to communicate to the concerned consulate to facilitate the travel of the petitioner as well as to provide help of interpreters if so required.

On Monday, the Delhi High Court had asked the Centre to make clear instructions on a petition seeking to facilitate diplomatic interventions and negotiations on behalf of a woman, who has been sentenced to death by a Yemen Court for the murder of a Yemeni national in 2017.

The plea states that an appeal court in Yemen on March 7, 2022, dismissed an appeal filed by Indian citizen Nimisha Priya, who has been sentenced to death for the murder of a Yemeni national in 2017.

The petition has been moved by "Save Nimisha Priya - International Action Council" to assist Nimisha Priya and her family. The organization has been formed in the month of September 2020 by a group of Non-Resident Keralites - Indians, working in different countries and also in different parts of India.

Nimisha stands accused of the murder of Talal Abdo Mahdi, a Yemeni national, who died in July 2017 after she allegedly injected him with sedatives to get to her passport that was in his possession. Nimisha had alleged abuse and torture by Mahdi.

In the plea moved in Delhi High Court, the petitioner's lawyer, Subhash Chandran KR told the court that Nimisha Priya, after her sentence by a trial court in 2020, had filed an appeal against the death penalty in an appeal court in Yemen capital. However, the appeal court has upheld the death sentence.

"Though another chance of appeal to the Supreme Court still exists, Nimisha Priya is unlikely to be spared the punishment awarded by the lower court for the 2017 murder. The apex court rarely sets aside the verdict of the appeal court as it will only examine if any procedural errors affected the outcome of the case, not its merits. She can hope to come out of the death row even now only if the victim's family accepts blood money and she manages to get relief from legal procedures," the petitioner said.

The Respondents herein are well aware of the instant case as the Embassy of India in Yemen engaged a lawyer to contest the appeal before the appeal court after huge outcries made by the petitioner, said the plea.

The petitioner mentioned that even after the appeal, judgment whereby the sentence to death is upheld, the negotiations are not started yet with the victim's family.

"Neither Nimisha's family members nor the members of the Petitioner organization are able to travel to Yemen for negotiations at present as the respondents have declared a travel ban for Indians to Yemen since 2016," the petitioner said.

"In this context, strong and timely interventions of Respondent Indian authorities to facilitate the negotiations are highly warranted considering the current socio-political situations in Yemen. The Petitioner and family of Nimisha are facing serious challenges to deal with the ongoing legal process there. Even the trial court judgment of 2020 has not been received yet. If the family of the victim agreed to pardon her by receiving "blood money" the petitioner is unable to pay the same as financial transactions to Yemen is also restricted by the Indian authorities," the petitioner said.

In these circumstances, the petitioner sought to issue direction to the Centre to facilitate diplomatic interventions as well as negotiations with the family of the victim on behalf of Nimisha Priya to save her life by paying blood money in accordance with the law of the land in a time-bound manner.

The petitioner also sought to issue direction to respondents to immediately initiate necessary steps for filing a formal appeal before the Supreme Court to save the life of Nimisha Priya in accordance with the law of Yemen and to make necessary arrangements for receiving the money collected or to be collected by the petitioner in India and transfer the same to the account of the family of the victim in Yemen through the official/diplomatic channel if the family of the victim is ready to pardon her by receiving the blood money.

( With inputs from ANI )