HC seeks Centre's response on Kerala woman's plea to travel to Yemen to save daughter on death row
New Delhi (PTI): The Delhi High Court has sought the Centre's stand on a plea to permit the mother of a woman from Kerala, who is facing the death penalty in Yemen for the murder of a national, to travel to the country to save her daughter from gallows.
Justice Subramonium Prasad asked the Centre's counsel to file a status report within two weeks and listed the matter for further hearing on November 16.
The Centre's counsel sought some time to take instructions and file the status report.
The court was hearing a petition by the mother of Nimisha Priya, who has been sentenced to death in Yemen. The petitioner had approached the high court earlier as well for a direction to the authorities to facilitate diplomatic intervention as well as negotiations with the family of the victim to save her daughter's life.
In the present plea, petitioner Premakumari sought a direction to the authorities to permit her to travel to Yemen despite the travel ban for Indian nationals.
The petitioner said the only way to save her daughter from the gallows is to negotiate with the family of the deceased by paying blood money for which purpose she has to travel to Yemen but due to travel ban, she is unable to go there.
Blood money refers to the compensation paid by an offender or his kin to the family of the victim.
Last year, 'Save Nimisha Priya International Action Council' had approached the high court seeking a direction to the central government to "facilitate diplomatic interventions as well as negotiations with the family of 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 high court had refused to direct the central government to negotiate the payment of blood money to save the woman.
In the previous petition, it was stated that Priya was an Indian nurse working in Yemen and she was convicted in 2020 for the murder of the Yemini national.
It had said Priya was accused of murdering Talal Abdo Mahdi. Mahdi died in July 2017 allegedly of overdose after she injected him with sedatives to get her passport that was in his possession.
The plea had alleged that Mahdi had forged documents to show that he was married to her and that she was allegedly abused and tortured by him.
Though she appealed against the death penalty but it was rejected, it had said, adding that another chance of appeal before the Supreme Court there still exists but Priya is unlikely to be spared and therefore, her only hope to escape death sentence is if the victim's family accepts blood money.
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Gehlot changes profile pic to 'Save Aravalli', asks Centre to reconsider definition
Jaipur (PTI): Congress leader Ashok Gehlot on Thursday urged the Centre to reconsider its definition of the Aravallis, warning that any damage to the mountain range posed a serious threat to the ecological future of north India.
Gehlot, a former Rajasthan chief minister, changed his social media profile picture in support of the nationwide 'SaveAravalli' campaign amid growing debate over mining and environmental safeguards in the Aravalli Range.
It was his symbolic protest against the new interpretation under which hills lower than 100 metres are no longer being recognised as part of the Aravalli system, he said.
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"The Aravalli cannot be judged by tape measures or height alone. It must be assessed by its ecological importance," Gehlot said, adding that the revised definition raised "a big question" over the future of north India.
Appealing to the Centre and the Supreme Court, Gehlot said the issue must be reconsidered in the interest of future generations and environmental security. He also urged citizens to participate in the campaign by changing their display pictures online to draw attention to the issue.
He said the Aravalli range functioned as a natural green wall against the expansion of the Thar desert and extreme heatwaves, protecting Delhi, Haryana and western Uttar Pradesh. Opening up smaller hills and so-called gap areas for mining would allow desertification to advance rapidly, he warned.
Gehlot also flagged concerns over air pollution, saying the hills and forests of the Aravallis acted as the "lungs" of the National Capital Region by checking dust storms and absorbing pollutants.
"When pollution levels are so alarming even with the Aravalli standing, one can imagine how disastrous the situation will be without it," he said.
Highlighting the water crisis, the former chief minister said the rocky terrain of the Aravallis played a crucial role in groundwater recharge by channelising rainwater underground.
"If the hills are destroyed, drinking water shortages will intensify, wildlife will disappear and the entire ecology will be pushed into danger," he said.
Gehlot argued that, from a scientific perspective, the Aravallis was a continuous chain and that even smaller hillocks were as vital as higher peaks.
