Clamour growing for union government intervention to save Nimisha Priya
The initial reports were sparked by a statement from Samuel Jerome Bhaskaran, an Indian national who has lived in Yemen for over two decades and has been involved in negotiating a settlement with the victim's family through the payment of blood money. Bhaskaran told TNIE over the phone that he received a call two days ago from the chairman of the Central Prison in Sana'a, who confirmed that the execution order had been issued.
Following this, Bhaskaran said the information was verified by a Yemeni national associated with the Indian Embassy in Saudi Arabia, who personally visited the prison in Sana'a and informed him of the development. 'The execution order has been confirmed. The priority now is to work with local authorities and the Indian government to seek a postponement and at least postpone the execution order of Nimisha Priya,' Bhaskaran said.
Priya, a native of Palakkad, has been on death row since 2020 after a Yemeni court sentenced her for the alleged murder of Talal Abdo Mehdi, a Yemeni businessman, in July 2017. Her final appeal was dismissed by Yemen's Supreme Judicial Council in November 2023, though the court left open the possibility of a pardon if the victim's family accepted blood money under Yemeni law.
Despite the claims of execution, official sources in the MEA and the Indian Embassy in Saudi Arabia have not confirmed any such development. India does not have an embassy in Yemen, and Nimisha is imprisoned in Sana'a, a region under Houthi control, making direct diplomatic intervention difficult. The ongoing civil conflict in Yemen has severely limited access for foreign missions and complicated communication.
In response to the circulating news, Advocate Subhash Chandran K R, a Supreme Court lawyer and member of the Save Nimisha Priya Action Council, said the council has not received any official communication.
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Hans India
17 minutes ago
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Hindi & Politics Of Regionalism
Every now and then, as predictably as pre-election freebies, certain state-level political leaders raise the bogey of 'Hindi imposition.' It's as if they have a trigger switch tied to their political survival that goes off whenever a central government initiative mentions Hindi in any capacity. The recent noise from Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Maharashtra and Kerala is a perfect example. These states have yet again accused the Modi government of trying to impose Hindi on them, even though no such law, bill, or directive has ever been passed. What's truly baffling is that even when the Centre merely promotes multilingual education or recommends Hindi as one of the national working languages for optional learning, it is somehow painted as a threat to their regional identity. Let me say this upfront, this is not about language. It never was. This is about politics. Regionalism is not a cultural assertion anymore, it is a political lifeline. The political design of division Over the years, regional parties have mastered the art of staying electorally relevant by building niche vote banks rooted in identity - language, region, caste, and in some cases, even dietary habits. They protect these vote banks as aggressively as a monopolist guards a dying product, not because it's valuable, but because it's all they have left. Whether it's the DMK in Tamil Nadu, the Congress and JD(S) in Karnataka, or the Left parties in Kerala, Udhav Sena, MNS in Maharashtra the pattern is clear. They feed the fear of cultural annihilation. They amplify a false sense of 'otherness' when it comes to the idea of India that the BJP or any national party proposes. And they particularly thrive on positioning Hindi as a weapon of domination. Let's be honest, these parties don't fear Hindi because of what it is. 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In my own political and public life, the ability to speak Hindi and English, while thinking in Telugu, has been a powerful advantage. It has not diminished my identity. It has enhanced my effectiveness and connect across the nation. The same principle holds for our youth. Don't be held hostage by those who want to limit your growth under the guise of protecting your culture. Bharat is a symphony The idea of Bharat is not built on linguistic uniformity. It's built on cultural harmony. One can speak Kannada and be a proud Indian. One can write in Malayalam and serve in the Indian Army. One can think in Tamil and lead in Delhi. We need to end this manufactured war on Hindi. We must call out the politics of regionalism for what it is, a desperate attempt to remain electorally relevant in the face of a rising, unified national narrative. Let our children learn any language they intend to - Telugu, Tamil, Kannada, Malayalam, Hindi, and English. Let them dream in many languages, think across borders, and work across states. Because in the end, the language of unity is understanding, not uniformity. (Author is the Chief Spokesperson of BJP, Chairman for Nation Building Foundation & a Harvard Business School certified Strategist.)
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