Jakarta, LiterasiHukum.com – The legal issue regarding former President Joko Widodo's diploma has entered a new chapter in the Solo City District Court (PN). This time, the lawsuit was filed through the mechanism of Citizen Lawsuit- CLS) , a legal avenue different from the Unlawful Act (PMH) lawsuit previously filed. The preliminary hearing with case number PN-SKT 28082025GIR was held on Tuesday, September 16, 2025. However, the panel of judges, chaired by Putu Gde Hariadi, decided to postpone the trial until September 30, 2025. This postponement was due to the absence of the Defendant 4, namely the Indonesian National Police (Polri), who did not send their legal representative.Request for Replacement of Panel of Judges and Potential Conflict of Interest

An interesting dynamic emerged in the preliminary hearing. The plaintiff, represented by attorney Muhammad Taufiq, stated that they would officially submit a request to the Head of the Solo City District Court to replace the composition of the panel of judges handling this case. The main reason is that the current panel of judges, also chaired by Putu Gde Hariadi, is the same panel that previously handled and rejected the PMH lawsuit regarding Jokowi's diploma. "We believe that this has the potential to produce a similar decision and undermine the principle of justice. So the judge must be replaced," Taufiq asserted. Taufiq based his argument on the principle of

pro justicia regulated in Law Number 48 of 2009 concerning Judicial Power. He fears that objectivity and fairness will not be achieved if this case is still tried by the same panel of judges. Substance of the Lawsuit

This lawsuit - CLS)

was filed by two alumni of Gadjah Mada University (UGM), Top Taufan Hakim and Bangun Sutoto. In addition to Jokowi (Defendant 1) and Polri (Defendant 4), they are also suing the Rector of UGM, Ova Emilia (Defendant 2), and the Vice Rector of UGM, Wening Udasmoro (Defendant 3). Muhammad Taufiq explained the fundamental difference between this CLS lawsuit and the previous lawsuit. According to him, in the CLS mechanism, the burden of proof does not lie on the authenticity of Jokowi's diploma. This lawsuit is more aimed at the public interest. "We don't have to prove the authenticity of Jokowi's diploma, just show that this country is not in order," he said. This is in line with the essence of - CLS) which is often used to test policies or actions of state administrators that are considered detrimental to the public interest. Responding to the lawsuit and the request for a change of judge, Jokowi's attorney, YB Irpan, stated that his party was still exploring the substance of the lawsuit. "At least we already have an idea of what to do, but it's too early to reveal it now," he said. Regarding the request for a change of judge, he left it entirely to the internal authority of the Solo City District Court. - CLS) News Source: This article is the result of paraphrasing and analysis of news reported by Tempo.co on September 17, 2025. Artikel ini merupakan hasil parafrase dan analisis dari berita yang dilansir oleh Tempo.co pada 17 September 2025.