Tomy Thomas, the husband of Nimisha Priya—an Indian nurse on death row in Yemen—has confirmed that she has been informed of her execution date by the authorities at the Central Prison in Sanaa. “She sent me a message saying they’ve communicated the date,” Tomy told Onmanorama.

Nimisha, a native of Palakkad, was sentenced to death in 2020 for the alleged murder of Yemeni national Talal Abdo Mehdi in July 2017. Her execution has reportedly been scheduled for July 16, according to human rights activist Samuel Jerome, who holds the power of attorney for Nimisha’s mother, Prema Kumari.

Tomy said that Indian authorities had been alerted and gave assurances that efforts were being made to intervene. He met Kerala Governor Rajendra Vishwanath Arlekar at Raj Bhavan on Thursday, accompanied by Puthuppally MLA Chandy Oommen. The governor spoke to Prema Kumari—who has been in Yemen for months pursuing ways to save her daughter—via video call and promised to take necessary steps, said Tomy. "We were planning to go to Delhi to meet higher officials, but dropped the plan after the governor assured full support," Tomy added. “We are trying everything possible. Both state and central governments are involved. There’s no point in blaming anyone.” However, he noted that the Indian embassy had not contacted him yet.

Nimisha had moved to Yemen in 2011 and worked as a nurse in private hospitals. Her husband and daughter returned to India in 2014 due to financial difficulties and the outbreak of civil war, which later made it allegedly impossible for them to return as Yemen stopped issuing new visas.

In 2015, Nimisha joined hands with Talal to establish a clinic in Sanaa, the capital of Yemen. As local law permits only nationals to open such facilities, she sought his help. During a visit to Kerala with Nimisha, Talal allegedly stole a wedding photograph of hers and later used it to falsely claim they were married. Over time, Talal reportedly took control of the clinic’s earnings, grew hostile when questioned about financial misappropriation, and began abusing Nimisha both mentally and physically. He allegedly forged documents to show they were married under his religion, took possession of her passport, and subjected her to threats and extortion.

In a desperate attempt to escape his control and retrieve her passport, Nimisha allegedly tried to sedate him, but the attempt went wrong, and he died. She was arrested in July 2017, and Yemeni courts charged her with murder. Despite appeals, the country’s Supreme Judicial Council reaffirmed the death sentence in 2023.

Meanwhile, the Save Nimisha Priya International Action Council has approached the Supreme Court, arguing that Nimisha is a victim of war who did not receive proper legal assistance. According to their petition, she was forced to sign several confessional statements in Arabic, which led to her conviction. They pointed out that the Yemeni appeal court had kept open the possibility of ‘blood money’ (Diyah) under Shariah law, allowing a pardon from the victim’s family.

The petition said negotiations with Talal's family had not begun and cited difficulties in initiating them, as Indians have been under a travel ban to Yemen since 2016. With no Indian diaspora functioning in the country, the petition emphasised that only a timely and strong diplomatic intervention by Indian authorities could save Nimisha. It added that facilitating such negotiations was crucial, given that the execution date has tentatively been set for July 16, 2025. The apex court is set to hear the petition on July 14.

Nimisha's only daughter, now 12, lives in a convent in Kerala. Her mother works as a domestic helper in Ernakulam, and her husband is an autorickshaw driver. The Save Nimisha Priya International Action Council was formed in September 2020 by a group of Non-Resident Keralites and Indians based in various parts of the world and India. The council has reportedly contacted the Attorney General regarding the matter. Onmanorama has reached out to the Embassy of Yemen in New Delhi for a response and is awaiting official confirmation from the Ministry of External Affairs.