Coordinating Minister Yusril Asked The Indian Government To Submit An Official Request Regarding The Transfer Of Prisoners

JAKARTA - Coordinating Minister for Law, Human Rights, Immigration and Corrections (Menko Kumham Imipas) Yusril Ihza Mahendra asked the Government of India to submit an official request if it wanted to transfer its citizens who were prisoners in Indonesia.

The request was made during a meeting with the Indian Ambassador to Indonesia, Sandeep Chakravorty, in Jakarta, Friday, August 1, 2025.

"Indonesia is open to discussing the prisoner transfer agreement, as long as it is in accordance with the national legal framework and the principle of reciprocity between countries," said Yusril as quoted by Antara.

He explained that a letter requesting the transfer of prisoners could be formally submitted through the Minister of Home Affairs or the Minister of Justice of India.

During the meeting, Ambassador Sandeep expressed hope that the Indonesian government could consider moving a number of Indian citizens who have been prisoners in Indonesia since 2004 and are now being held at the Nusakambangan Penitentiary.

According to Chakravorty, the Indian government is trying to get the inmates to serve the remainder of their sentence in their home country, in line with India's legal system that allows the release of life imprisonment after serving a minimum of 14 years in prison.

"Some of them have been in Indonesian prison for more than 20 years," said the Indian Ambassador.

He also mentioned that three Indian citizens are currently sentenced to death in Indonesia after being arrested along with a ship carrying narcotics in the waters of Karimun, Riau Islands.

Chakravorty submitted a request that the three of them have proper access to communications with Indian diplomatic representatives during the legal process.

He said that his party was preparing an appeal because he considered that there were irregularities in the legal process for the three of them.

Responding to this, Yusril said that his party had not received detailed information and would soon undergo further research.

"I will try to coordinate as soon as possible, because this concerns the basic rights of foreign nationals in our justice system," said Yusril.