New Delhi, 9 July

Communist Party of India (Marxist) MP John Brittas on Wednesday wrote to External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar urging him to intervene with the highest level authorities in Yemen to immediately halt the execution of Indian nurse Nimisha Priya.

In a letter to Jaishankar, Brittas quoted reports that Nimisha's execution has been scheduled for 16 July.

"The distressing news of this impending execution has caused widespread anxiety and anguish among her family and well-wishers, underscoring the need for immediate and decisive intervention by the Government of India," the MP wrote.

Brittas also called on the Indian government to facilitate and mediate negotiations with the family of the deceased, tribal leaders, and local stakeholders to secure a pardon through "diyat" (blood money), using diplomatic channels and local interlocutors.

Priya, hailing from Kollengode in Kerala's Palakkad district, was found guilty of murdering a Yemeni man in July 2017. He was her business partner.

In 2020, a Yemeni court handed her the death sentence, and the country's Supreme Judicial Council dismissed her appeal in November 2023.

The 38-year-old nurse is presently lodged in a jail in Sana'a, the Yemeni capital city under the control of the Iran-backed Houthis.