Finance Minister Sri Mulyani Indrawati has accused Golkar Party chairman Aburizal Bakrie of trying to discredit her in an interview published in the Wall Street Journal on Thursday.

Sri Mulyani said that the Rp 6.7 trillion rupiah ($700 million) bailout for Bank Century was legal. She claimed a parliamentary probe into the government's handling of the bailout was an attempt by rival politicians to topple her because of her efforts to overhaul the country's bureaucracy.

She said she believed the probe was an attempt to discredit her by politicians that oppose her reform agenda, notably leaders of the Golkar Party, including chairman Aburizal Bakrie, a billionaire businessman and a former cabinet member.

"Aburizal Bakrie is not happy with me. I'm not expecting anyone in Golkar will be fair or kind to me," Sri Mulyani said.

Tensions between herself and Bakrie commenced last year, she said, when she opposed the closure of Indonesia's stock exchange amid a run on companies controlled by Bakrie. Aburizal Bakrie ordered the closure, she said.

Sri Mulyani also last year imposed a travel ban on a number of coal-mining executives, including some from Bakrie's companies, after a dispute over the refusal of the companies to pay royalties on the sale of coal to the government.

In the interview, she said Indonesia was serious about eradicating corrupt officials in the courts, Attorney General's Office and the National Police. However, she said she was aware of the consequences of calling for change.

"I should become more realistic, I'm expecting a nasty battle if I'm going to do the reform," she said.