Who is Sheikh Abubakr Ahmad, the Grand Mufti of India, who helped defer Nimisha Priyas execution in Yemen?

Sheikh Abubakr Ahmad, formally often called Kanthapuram A. P. Aboobacker Musliyar and serving because the tenth Grand Mufti of India, has efficiently facilitated the deferment of the execution of Indian nurse Nimisha Priya in Yemen. The intervention, constructed on his function as India’s highest Sunni non secular authority and carried out via Islamic authorized norms like diyāh (blood cash), spotlights a uncommon occasion of non secular and diplomatic mediation in a overseas Sharia courtroom.

Who is Sheikh Abubakr Ahmad and the way did he change into Grand Mufti?

Sheikh Abubakr Ahmad was elected Grand Mufti of India on February 24, 2019, by the All India Tanzeem Ulama-e-Islam, a nationwide physique of Sunni clerics. Born as A.P. Aboobacker Musliyar in Kanthapuram, Kozhikode, Kerala, he has risen to nationwide prominence via his decades-long management in Islamic training, social welfare, and public discourse. He can be the overall secretary of the All India Sunni Jamiyyathul Ulama and the Samastha Kerala Jem-iyyathul Ulama — two of India’s most influential Sunni Muslim organisations. His rise to the title of Grand Mufti, a largely symbolic however influential place, marked a historic second as he grew to become one of many few South Indian students to carry the publish.

What are his non secular credentials and institutional affiliations?

According to his official web site, Sheikh Abubakr Ahmad is the founder and chancellor of Markazu Saquafathi Sunniyya (Jamia Markaz), established in 1978 in Kerala. The establishment has expanded to embody a complete community of academic centres, charitable organisations, and social service models. He has represented Indian Muslim students at worldwide boards, together with periods on the United Nations and occasions organised by UNESCO. He can be an everyday participant in world interfaith conferences. Through initiatives such because the International Peace Conference and Markaz-run academic programmes, he has been concerned in actions centered on training, non secular scholarship, and neighborhood welfare.

What prompted his intervention within the Nimisha Priya case?

The case of Nimisha Priya, a nurse from Kerala, sentenced to loss of life in Yemen for the 2017 homicide of Yemeni nationwide Talal Abdo Mahdi, drew widespread consideration in India. With the execution scheduled for July 16, 2025, pressing appeals have been made by human rights activists and public representatives. Among them was Kerala Congress MLA Chandy Oommen, who approached Sheikh Abubakr Ahmad, requesting his intervention to safe clemency beneath Islamic legislation. Recognising the urgency and humanitarian concern, the Grand Mufti reached out to distinguished Yemeni Sufi scholar Sheikh Habib Umar bin Hafiz to discover the potential for acquiring a pardon from the sufferer’s household beneath the Islamic idea of diyāh.

Also Read: Execution of Indian nurse in Yemen: Sunni chief Kanthapuram talks to Yemeni scholar in bid to save lots of Nimisha Priya’s life

Yemen’s authorized system, rooted in Islamic legislation, permits for the household of a homicide sufferer to pardon the accused in trade for monetary compensation, or diyāh. Sheikh Abubakr Ahmad utilised this precept in his enchantment, stating that Islam encourages forgiveness and reconciliation. He emphasised to Yemeni non secular leaders that “in Islam, there’s one other legislation the place the sufferer’s household pardons the accused”. He recommended that this path be pursued within the case of Nimisha Priya. Through coordinated efforts involving Yemeni tribal leaders, judicial authorities, and spiritual students, her execution was briefly deferred.

What end result has been achieved thus far and what lies forward?

The most fast end result of Sheikh Abubakr Ahmad’s intervention has been the postponement of Nimisha Priya’s execution. The keep was granted after last-minute negotiations in Damar, Yemen, initiated via non secular channels. Talks between the sufferer’s household and mediators, each non secular and diplomatic, are ongoing. The hope now could be to safe a full pardon via a proper diyāh settlement, which might result in Nimisha Priya ’s launch from capital punishment. 

In a closing bid to save lots of Nimisha Priya, Mr. Aboobacker Musliar has appealed to Mahdi’s household to pardon her. With her execution looming, Nimisha Priya’s destiny now rests on the sufferer’s household’s willingness to just accept $1 million in diyāh (blood cash) and grant her clemency. Sources near Mr. Aboobacker Musliar have been hopeful that Habib Omar’s revered standing and affect in Yemeni society will assist safe a beneficial end result for Nimisha. 

Addressing the media at Karanthur, close to Kozhikode, on Tuesday (July 15, 2025), Mr. Aboobacker Musliar mentioned that he efficiently appealed to Yemeni students to intervene in Nimisha Priya’s case, contemplating the significance of saving a human life. “We have simply acquired official affirmation from the Yemeni authorities that Nimisha Priya’s execution has been stayed primarily based on our request. Let us all pray for her protected launch,” he mentioned.