Court Rejects Yaqut's Pretrial Plea in Hajj Quota Corruption Case

Jakarta - A judge has rejected a pretrial motion filed by former Religious Affairs Minister Yaqut Cholil Qoumas challenging his designation as a suspect by the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) in an alleged corruption case involving additional hajj quotas for the 2023-2024 pilgrimage season.

“The court accordingly rejects the petitioner’s pretrial motion in full,” stated Judge Sulistyo Muhammad Dwi Putro during the pretrial ruling at Jakarta South District Court on Wednesday.

The judge dismissed the defendant’s exceptions and rejected the pretrial motion entirely, with court costs ruled as nil.

The KPK stated in its response that Yaqut’s designation as a suspect complied with legal procedures, having met the minimum requirement of two valid pieces of evidence. The commission noted that more than 40 individuals had provided statements in accordance with the formal request for information filed in Yaqut Cholil Qoumas’s name.

The KPK’s legal team further noted that the designation had undergone a comprehensive process of data, information, and evidence gathering, with the sufficiency threshold of two pieces of evidence having been satisfied.

Previously, on 9 August 2025, the KPK announced it would investigate alleged corruption in the determination of hajj quotas and the administration of pilgrimage activities at the Religious Affairs Ministry during 2023-2024. On 11 August 2025, the KPK announced that preliminary calculations of state losses in the case exceeded Rp1 trillion and issued travel bans against three individuals for up to six months.

On 9 January 2026, the KPK designated two of the three individuals under travel restrictions as suspects in the alleged hajj quota corruption case: Yaqut Cholil Qoumas and Ishfah Abidal Aziz.

Yaqut subsequently filed his pretrial motion challenging his designation as a suspect at Jakarta South District Court on 10 February 2026, with the case registered under number 19/Pid.Pra/2026/PN JKT.SEL.