Kathmandu, Jan. 26 -- Umesh Yadav was working on a water pipeline in Saudi Arabia in 2006 when Mohammad Latif Wasir, a Pakistani colleague, asked him for a torch. Yadav says that as he passed the torch, Wasir fell off a ladder and injured his nose. An angry Wasir then started to pummel Yadav, who retaliated by hitting him back with whatever he could find-a small scaffolding pipe.

"It was a small dispute," Yadav recounted to the Post. "When he started punching my face, I got angry so I hit him back a few times."

Wasir ended up in hospital with a head wound and after 15 days, he died.

Yadav, who had only just arrived in Jubail, a city in the eastern province of Saudi Arabia half a month ago, was charged with murder and given the death pe...