Heru Andriyanto – Controversial cleric Abu Bakar Bashir stormed out of his court hearing after his lawyer on Monday was expelled for contempt of court.

"I will not follow the hearing without my lawyer," Bashir told presiding judge Herri Swantoro, who had earlier ordered guards to escort lawyer Mahdi Rahman out of the South Jakarta District Court.

Madhi had slammed a book down on the table in protest to the use of video conferencing to obtain the testimonies of 16 witnesses.

"I am asking that you to get a replacement for that lawyer," replied Herri, adding that as the chairman of the district court he had the authority to expel attendants for disrupting behavior.

"What kind of rules [are these]? You cannot force me," said the angry cleric. "I, as a faithful man, have the right to defend myself against the prosecutors' accusations of terrorism in Aceh – which are not true."

The presiding judge interrupted Bashir to ask him if he would like continue with the hearing or not, leading the cleric to become incresingly angry.

"Is Islam allowed in Indonesia? I ask the panel to be more flexible," Bashir said. "Because prosecutors are in opposition to i'dad [preparations for armed conflict], this is a panel of infidels. It is haram [not permitted under Islam] for me to attend a court that makes joke of verses from Allah," he said.

As Bashir left the court, prosecutors asked the court to press ahead with the witness testimonies via video link.