Kadin held an extraordinary congress in Jakarta on Saturday that ended in Arsjad’s removal, before his tenure as chair was to end in 2026, and the appointment of Anindya Bakrie as the chair of the influential business lobby. Anindya is the son of senior Golkar Party politician and business mogul Aburizal Bakrie.

But Arsjad has since contested the legitimacy of the congress, saying it violated Kadin’s own bylaws and that he remained the rightful chair of Kadin.

“We do not recognize the extraordinary national congress on Saturday. Kadin is an independent organization and a home for businesspeople and [business] organizations. There is only one Kadin in Indonesia,” Arsjad told a press conference on Sunday.

Arsjad presented written statements of support from 21 of the 35 Kadin provincial chairs. They rejected Saturday’s congress and the appointment of Anindya as the new Kadin chair.

He said his camp had started an internal investigation to identify and take disciplinary action against those involved in instigating the congress.

“We will also pursue legal action against those involved to maintain the integrity of the organization,” he said, without detailing what that action would be.