Indian nurse on death row in Yemen: SC told negotiations going on, no immediate threat
The counsel for petitioner organisation Save Nimisha Priya International Action Council, which is extending legal support to Priya, requested a bench of Justices Vikram Nath and Sandeep Mehta to adjourn the matter.
The apex court was hearing a plea seeking a direction to the Centre to use diplomatic channels to save the 38-year-old nurse from Palakkad in Kerala who was convicted of murdering her Yemeni business partner in 2017.
"Negotiations are going on. As of now there is no immediate threat. Kindly adjourn it by four weeks. Hopefully, everything will be over by that time," the counsel said.
"Let this matter be listed after eight weeks," the bench then said.
The petitioner's counsel said they would mention the matter before the top court if there was any urgency.
The top court was apprised last month that Priya's execution, which was scheduled for July 16, had been stayed.
On July 18, the Centre informed the top court that efforts were on and the government was trying everything possible to ensure Priya came out safely.
The petitioner organisation sought a Centre-appointed delegation to go to Yemen to meet the murder victim's family for negotiations.
The bench said the petitioner could make a representation to the government.
The petitioner's counsel had earlier said Priya's mother was in Yemen to negotiate with the victim's family and she has gone there as the Delhi High Court asked the Centre to give her permission to travel.
Priya was convicted in 2017, sentenced to death in 2020 and her final appeal rejected in 2023.
She is imprisoned in a jail in the Yemen capital Sana'a.
The petitioner's counsel had earlier told the apex court that payment of blood money to the family of the deceased permissible under the Sharia law could be explored. He said the victim's family might pardon Priya if blood money was paid.
On July 17, India said it was in touch with Yemeni authorities as well as certain friendly nations as part of efforts to reach a "mutually agreeable solution" in the case.
According to Yemeni court documents, Priya allegedly drugged and murdered Talal Abdo Mahdi in July 2017.
This article was generated from an automated news agency feed without modifications to text.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
New Indian Express
21 minutes ago
- New Indian Express
Minister Dr G Parameshwara: Firms keen on Metro to Tumakuru
TUMAKURU: Home Minister Dr G Parameshwara here on Friday expressed confidence that the Metro Rail project from Bengaluru will be extended to Tumakuru as some companies have expressed interest to implement the project under the Public-Private Partnership (PPP) model. 'The Metro Rail feasibility report was submitted to the government and it will be presented before the cabinet or technical committee. Some companies have come forward to implement the project and a special purpose vehicle (SPV) will be floated to run the project. The median running along the National Highway will be used, and for that permission from the Centre is required. If the sanction is not given, we will plan an alternative,' he said after taking part in the 78th Independence Day celebrations at the Mahatma Gandhi stadium here. Metro and suburban rails are two possible transport projects between Bengaluru and Tumakuru, Kolar, Mysuru, Kanakapura and Nelamangala. The cabinet approved an allocation of Rs 25 crore for a feasibility study. He said the work on the six-lane National Highway between Bengaluru and Tumakuru is in progress and it will be converted to ten lanes. The minister said CM Siddaramaiah, PWD minister Satish Jarkiholi and he met Union Surface Transport Minister Nitin Gadkari to discuss this project. Deputy Commissioner Subha Kalyan and Superintendent of Police Ashok KV have cleared some bottlenecks and the work will be completed by 2026, he said. He hoped that the construction of a new international cricket stadium near Tumakuru by the Karnataka State Cricket Association (KSCA) will help prevent stampedes like the one at M Chinnaswamy stadium that claimed the lives of 11. The government has already handed over 41 acres to KSCA, but the project was delayed after the cricket association was busy battling issues related to the stampede, he said. KSCA has made a provision of Rs 160 crore for the stadium.
Hans India
21 minutes ago
- Hans India
Laid strong foundation for India's development, good governance: Leaders pay tributes to Atal Bihari Vajpayee
New Delhi: As India marked the seventh death anniversary of former Prime Minister and 'Bharat Ratna' Atal Bihari Vajpayee, tributes poured in, praising his dedication to national service and good governance. Union Home Minister Amit Shah also took to X and paid tributes to the former Prime Minister. "Former Prime Minister, founding member of the BJP, Bharat Ratna revered Atal Bihari Vajpayee ji laid a strong foundation for development and good governance while advancing value-based politics. Atal ji was a leader who never compromised on principles and ideology, even if it meant losing his government," HM Shah posted on X. "Under his leadership, India conducted successful Nuclear tests in Pokhran and delivered a decisive response to enemies in the Kargil War. Through his thoughts and actions, Atal ji will continue to inspire us all to walk the path of national service. On the death anniversary of revered Atal ji, I pay my respects to him," he added. Union Health Minister J.P. Nadda also took to X and paid heartfelt tributes to Atal Bihari Vajpayee, calling him an "inspiration for countless workers" and "an ideal exemplar of good governance." "Revered Atal ji dedicated his life to the creation of a strong, prosperous, and self-reliant India. From the establishment of the BJP to the building of a robust India, he remained steadfastly committed throughout his life. His thoughts and actions for public service and national upliftment are exemplary for millions of BJP workers," he added. Union Defence Minister Rajnath Singh said that India will remember Atal Bihari Vajpayee's "tremendous" contributions to the country. "I pay homage to Atalji on his Punya Tithi. He worked all his life with the resolve of building a strong and prosperous India. The nation will always remember his tremendous contribution," Rajnath Singh wrote on X. External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar also took to social media and posted, "Join the nation in paying homage to Bharat Ratna Atal Bihari Vajpayee ji on his Punya Tithi. His lifelong contributions to nation-building and advancing India's strategic interests will forever be cherished." Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami also took to social media and paid homage to the "unparalleled figure in Indian politics," Atal Bihari Vajpayee, calling him an "eloquent orator" and a "skilled politician." "Your unique personality, vibrant oratory, and nationalist ideology gave a new direction to Indian politics. Your life is an exemplary model of patriotism, dedication, and service, which will always inspire us to move forward on the path of nation-building," Uttarakhand CM wrote on X. Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath paid his heartfelt tributes to the former Prime Minister, calling him "people's leader" and "fearless guardian of national duty." Taking to X, he posted, "He was the architect of integrity in Indian politics, the voice of gentleness and restraint in dialogue, the embodiment of morality in national policy, and the flagbearer of national duty. Revered Atal ji was truly a symbol of political dedication. We offer countless salutations to his sacred memories!" The BJP also took to social media and paid tributes to its founding member, Atal Bihari Vajpayee. "A humble tribute on the death anniversary of the revered Atal Bihari Vajpayee ji, the pathfinder of millions of workers of the Bharatiya Janata Party, our source of inspiration, former Prime Minister, and Bharat Ratna," the BJP wrote on X.
Hindustan Times
21 minutes ago
- Hindustan Times
Sanjaya Baru interview: We've turned emigration of talented Indians into an aspiration
A record number of wealthy Indians are leaving the country. According to a recent report by Kotak Bank, one in five UHNIs is either in the process of migrating abroad or has plans to do so. Over 23,000 millionaires have left the country in the last decade, says Sanjaya Baru. In his latest book, Secession of the Successful: The Flight out of New India, the veteran journalist and policy commentator records the various phases of organised migration out of the country and examines the reasons behind the current exodus. Also read | Review: Sanjaya Baru's book does a favour to history, Congress Sanjaya Baru, an economist and political analyst, has written extensively on India's economic transformation and development. His recent book is Secession of the Successful: The Flight Out of New India. For the elite, the pull of the first-world life, especially in Dubai or Singapore, is too strong, says Baru. 'Why wait for 2047 to live in a developed economy if you can do so today?' he says. In this interview, Baru talks about how the exodus has been normalised, the political and economic factors driving it, and what it means for a country that hopes to be a developed economy by 2047. You argue in your book that India's elite aren't just leaving physically, they are slowly pulling away from the idea of India itself. So, would you call this book a warning, a lament, or a diagnosis? It's certainly not a lament. It is a warning. It's a diagnosis to begin with. The brain drain, or the export of human capital, drew attention 40 to 50 years ago when economists like Jagdish Bhagwati wrote about it. But in the last quarter century, no one is paying attention. We have normalised the emigration of talented Indians, to the point where the government actually takes pride in promoting it. So yes, it's a warning: that you're allowing more and more of your talented people to leave, and doing nothing to retain them. And it's a diagnosis, because I look at the different manifestations of emigration. You've described the secession as a flight from responsibility. The rich are also leaving Brazil, South Africa and Turkey. So, why should we be expecting something different from the elite in India? I don't expect anything different. This is not peculiarly Indian, nor is it new. If other countries don't pay attention, that's their headache. But as an Indian concerned about the economy, I worry that more and more talented Indians are leaving. You've written about the government facilitating emigration. Other countries try to curb it. Is this official encouragement a policy mistake? It is a mistake, but a recent one. Labour migration involves talent too, but given our large pool of unemployed workers, I don't worry about it as much. Highly qualified Indians leaving is something a poor, low-income, developing country like ours should worry about. Countries like China, Taiwan, or Korea had large-scale emigration 30 to 40 years ago, but now have return migration because they've become developed economies. We are not at that stage. We cannot prevent emigration. Proposals like Bhagwati's 'brain drain' tax in the 1980s were dismissed as impractical, but why should we encourage it? For example, the foreign minister recently launched the 'Global Access for Talented Indians' initiative. Why should the government get involved in sending people out? We are a capital-deficit economy — and by capital I mean not just finance, but also human capital. Our record in research, science, and advanced fields is poor for a country of our size. What role have political changes played, especially since 2014? The numbers show an increase in the emigration of wealthy and elite Indians over the last decade. There's an economic reason and a political reason. Economically, more Indians can now afford to buy citizenship overseas, property overseas, educate their children abroad, and live abroad. Politically, there is fear — of the taxman, the Enforcement Directorate, and harassment by the bureaucracy. Last year Prime Minister Narendra Modi promised an 'ease of living mission', but nothing was heard after that. Day-to-day life has become more of a headache: constant KYC forms, compliance demands. That's driving some people out. At diaspora events, overseas Indians cheer the Prime Minister and shout 'Bharat Mata ki Jai' and yet they don't return. Is this performative? It is performative, but more than that, it's the politicisation of the diaspora to serve domestic political needs. Every prime minister since 1947 has met overseas Indians; what's new is using these audiences to influence the domestic political process. This risks diplomatic consequences. A Singaporean diplomat once asked me if politicisation of overseas Indians could hurt bilateral relations. Tensions among Sikhs, Khalistanis, and Hindu groups in Canada, the UK, and the US show that the diaspora can become a source of political and law-and-order problems. And yes, there is hypocrisy. If you're so proud of Bharat Mata and this leadership, why don't you come back and help build the country? Post-independence, some of India's best minds went abroad but returned. That isn't happening now. Why? In Jawaharlal Nehru's time, many high-profile Indians returned — Homi Bhabha, Vikram Sarabhai, others — sometimes at his personal request. Conditions in India were modest, but they still came back. In recent decades, very few have returned. Even those who did, like Raghuram Rajan, stayed only briefly. The trend of permanent high-profile return ended in the 1980s. Can India still turn its diaspora into a national asset, as other countries have? Yes, the opportunity hasn't passed. But it depends on leadership that can inspire people the way Nehru did. Today, 22,000 Indians are professors in the US. If even 2% came to teach here, it would make a difference. Some universities like ISB, Ashoka, and Jindal have attracted talent, but not in large numbers. Have we made emigration too aspirational, then? Exactly. We're not ringing alarm bells; we've internalised it. As (economist) Devesh Kapur once noted, most of our elite — across business, politics, diplomacy, bureaucracy, the armed forces, academia — have children who want to emigrate. It's a loss of both human and financial capital. Last year, for the first time, outward FDI exceeded inward FDI. In a labour-surplus, capital-deficit economy, we should be retaining both finance and human capital. But we're not even trying.
