KPK Reply Brief: Yaqut Appears to Be Dodging the Law Enforcement Process
Jakarta — The Legal Bureau of the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) has responded to arguments by the counsel for former Indonesian Minister of Religious Affairs Yaqut Cholil Qoumas, who contend that his client only received a notice of designation as a suspect, not the formal indictment in the alleged extra Haj quota corruption case. The KPK Legal Bureau said Yaqut’s counsel appears to be trying to avert the ongoing law enforcement process. ‘The Applicant appears to be avoiding the enforcement process conducted by the Respondent by stating he has not received the suspect designation letter as provided for in Article 90 of the new KUHAP. The Applicant seeks to negate the existence of the order issued by the Respondent since 2025, namely Order No. 61 dated 8 August 2025 that underpins the initiation of the investigation,’ the KPK’s Legal Bureau said during the reading of the duplik at the pretrial hearing at the South Jakarta District Court on Wednesday (4 March).
The Bureau emphasised that Yaqut had previously undergone examination as a witness or prospective suspect before being formally named a suspect. The request for information is recorded in the Minutes of Request for Information dated 7 August 2025 and 1 September 2025.
‘Terkait dalil Pemohon tersebut, Termohon tanggapi bahwa Pemohon telah diperiksa sebelum ditetapkan sebagai tersangka yang dituangkan dalam Berita Acara Permintaan Keterangan tanggal 7 Agustus 2025 yang ditandatangani Pemohon dan tanggal 1 September 2025 yang ditandatangani Pemohon,’ imbuhnya.
The Bureau added that it had held a case conference with the Audit Board of Indonesia (BPK) during the investigation and prosecution stages, as recorded in the case exposé minutes.
Based on these arguments, the Legal Bureau asked the judges to deny Yaqut’s pretrial application in its entirety.
The Bureau also asked the judges to declare the suspect designation against Yaqut as lawful and based on the law, and to declare the sequence of the investigation in the alleged Haj quota corruption case as lawful.
‘Menyatakan Termohon berwenang melakukan penyidikan perkara a quo. Menyatakan penyidikan oleh Termohon adalah sah dan berdasarkan hukum. Menghukum Pemohon untuk membayar biaya perkara yang timbul akibat permohonannya,’ katanya.
Yaqut, together with his Special Assistant Ishfah Abidal Aziz alias Gus Alex, has been named a suspect by the KPK in the case of the alleged extra Haj quota corruption. However, neither has been detained.
The KPK has also asked the Directorate General of Immigration to bar Yaqut and Ishfah from leaving the country for six months up to 12 August 2026.
During the course of the investigation, the KPK has raided several locations, including Yaqut’s residence in Condet, East Jakarta; a Haj and Umrah travel agency office in Jakarta; the home of a civil servant at the Ministry of Religious Affairs in Depok; and the Directorate General of Hajj and Umrah (PHU) offices at the Ministry of Religious Affairs.
Many items of evidence suspected to be linked to the case were seized, including documents, Electronic Evidence (BBE), and vehicles and property.
According to calculations by the Audit Board of Indonesia (BPK), the state is said to have incurred losses of Rp622,090,207,166.41 (Rp622 billion) from the alleged extra Haj quota case for the 2023 and 2024 operations.
The figure emerged some time ago, well after Yaqut and Ishfah were designated and announced as suspects.
That loss figure became a point of contention raised by Yaqut’s lawyer because it was issued after her client was designated as a suspect via the Investigation Order (Sprindik) dated 8 January 2026.
However, according to Yaqut’s lawyer, Mellisa Anggraini, the actual, concrete and certain loss must be proven by law enforcement authorities before designating someone as a suspect.
‘Because without that loss, the alleged crime would not be found,’ Mellisa said while reading the replication at the pretrial hearing at the South Jakarta District Court on Wednesday, 4 March.