Police chief Insp. Gen. Tito Karnavian said a 2013 circular issued by the police chief at the time advised the force to postpone any criminal investigation implicating an election candidate until the election was over.

The purpose of the circular was to prevent politicians from using criminal investigations as a political weapon. The police, however, decided to ignore the circular given the sensitivity of Ahok’s case.

“Considering the highly sensitive nature of the case, I had even ordered the head of the [National Police’s] Criminal Investigation Department (Bareskrim) to begin investigating this case before Oct. 21," Tito said, referring to Bareskrim head Comr. Gen. Ari Dono Sukmanto. 

The police had received 14 reports from Islamic organizations that accused Ahok of committing blasphemy. Police questioned 29 witnesses and 39 experts in the investigation before screening the case on Tuesday.

Ahok has been accused of defaming the Quran for suggesting that some people have been exploiting the Islamic holy scripture for political purposes.

On Nov. 4, thousands of protesters staged a mass demonstration to urge law enforcers to prosecute Ahok for alleged blasphemy. They threatened to hold another large-scale protest on Nov. 25 had police cleared Ahok. (ary)

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