Government Wins Appeal Against Pontjo Sutowo's PT Indobuildco in Jakarta Administrative Court

JAKARTA, KOMPAS.com - The government has won its appeal against Pontjo Sutowo’s company, PT Indobuildco, in a state administrative dispute concerning the land under the former Hak Guna Bangunan (HGB) title in the Gelora Bung Karno complex (GBK), Central Jakarta, where the Sultan Hotel stands. The victory was decided by the Jakarta High Administrative Court in Jakarta via Judgment No. 13/B/2026/PT.TUN.JKT announced on 26 February 2026. The case was appealed by the Ministry of State Secretariat of the Republic of Indonesia as Appellant I and the Centre for the Management of the Bung Karno Sports Complex (PPK GBK) as Appellant II. In the verdict, the panel accepted the government’s appeal and annulled the Jakarta Administrative Court’s decision No. 221/G/2025/PTUN.JKT dated 3 December 2025. The appellate panel accepted the government’s objection on absolute competence or the authority to adjudicate. The panel held that the object of the dispute, in the form of three letters of summons from the Ministry of State Secretariat to PT Indobuildco, originated from civil-law relations. The three letters are numbered B-32/KSN/S/PB.02/12/2024 dated 20 December 2024, B-18/KSN/S/OT.03.01/03/2025 dated 17 March 2025, and B-34/KSN/S/OT.03.01/03/2025 dated 25 March 2025. According to the panel, the issuing of these demand letters constitutes part of efforts to preserve civil-law rights, including the collection of royalties for the disputed land. Because they are civil-law acts, the panel stated that the subject matter does not fall within the meaning of a State Administrative Court Decision that can be reviewed in administrative court proceedings. With the acceptance of that exception, the Indobuildco suit was dismissed. The ruling was delivered in the panel’s deliberations on 23 February 2026 and announced at an open hearing to the public online on 26 February 2026. PT Indobuildco sought a security deposit should it be required to vacate the Sultan Hotel in the GBK area. This followed the decision in Case No. 208/PDT.G/2025/PN.JKT.PST concerning PT Indobuildco’s civil suit against the Minister of State Secretariat, which ruled that the land property conflict in the GBK area was decided in favour of the state.