Yaqut Officially Detained Over Hajj Quota Case, Details of Evidence Against Him
JAKARTA — The Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) has presented a series of evidence against Yaqut Cholil Qoumas, the former Minister of Religious Affairs, who has been designated as a suspect and detained in connection with the 2023-2024 hajj quota case.
During a press conference on Thursday, 12 March 2026, KPK Deputy for Prosecution and Enforcement Asep Guntur Rahayu explained that the evidence ensures the legal construction of the hajj quota case is robust.
“We certainly do not want to be careless in determining criminal conduct. Therefore, investigators confirmed various possibilities by collecting several pieces of evidence,” Asep stated at the KPK’s Red-White Building in Jakarta on Thursday, 12 March 2026.
The evidence did not come from a single source but rather a combination of materials gathered by investigators from various sources. The evidence includes electronic records, witness testimony, as well as documents and notes related to the case. During the investigation, the KPK also traced the role of Ishfah Abidal Aziz, known as Gus Alex.
“This is reinforced by further testimony and evidence, both in the form of electronic records and other physical evidence,” Asep said.
The KPK emphasised that all evidence forms the basis upon which investigators established charges and arrested those allegedly involved in the alleged hajj quota corruption case.
Yaqut is accused of ordering Hilman Latief, the Director General of Hajj and Umrah Implementation (PHU), to redistribute the additional hajj quota from its original 92 per cent allocation for regular hajj and 8 per cent for special hajj to an equal 50 per cent split. This instruction allegedly came after Yaqut’s November 2023 meeting with Fuad Hasan Masyur, chairman of the Steering Board of the Hajj and Umrah Travel Association Forum (Forum SATHU).
According to Asep, Yaqut subsequently ordered Hilman to conduct a simulation that could serve as justification or grounds for changing the additional quota composition to 10,000 regular hajj and 10,000 special hajj pilgrims respectively.
In late December 2023, the Religious Affairs Minister issued Decision Number 1156 regarding the Additional Hajj Quota for 1445 Hijrah/2023 CE, which allocated the additional quota at 10,000 each. This ministerial decision contradicted Article 64 paragraph 2 of Law Number 8 of 2019 on the Implementation of Hajj and Umrah Worship, which stipulates that additional hajj quotas shall be distributed at 92 per cent for regular hajj and 8 per cent for special hajj.
In this case, Yaqut is charged with violating Article 2 paragraph (1) and/or Article 3 read together with Article 18 of Law Number 31 of 1999 on Eradication of Corruption Offences, as amended by Law Number 20 of 2001, as well as Article 55 paragraph (1) of the old Criminal Code (KUHP).