The Democratic Party has given antigraft officials until the end of next month to either name their chairman a corruption suspect or exonerate him of any role in a bid-rigging case.

Syarief Hassan, a member of the ruling party's board of patrons, said on Wednesday that the suspense over chairman Anas Urbaningrum had been dragging on for far too long.

"We don't want to be held hostage to such a process. If by end of June no action is taken [against him], then it means that Anas is clean," Syarief said in Balikpapan, East Kalimantan.

He was quick to add that the demand should not be seen as an attempt to pressure the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) or intervene in its work. "We just hope that Anas's legal status can be made clear soon," he said.

Should the KPK not decide anything by the end of June, he added, this should be acknowledged as recognition that the allegations against Anas were unfounded.

Anas has been named by high-profile graft convict Muhammad Nazaruddin, the former Democrat treasurer, as having received kickbacks to help rig a bid for the construction of the Hambalang sports center in Sentul, Bogor.

Nazaruddin, who was earlier this year convicted in a separate but similar bid-rigging case, claimed that Anas took Rp 100 billion ($10.6 million) from one of the winning contractors, which he allegedly used to fund his bid to become the Democrat chairman in 2010.

Anas has also been implicated in the Hambalang case by several witnesses in Nazaruddin's trial. Nazaruddin has also fingered Sports Minister Andi Mallarangeng and Democrat legislator Angelina Sondakh in the same case.

The KPK questioned Andi as a witness last week and said it planned to eventually call Anas in for questioning. Angelina has been named a suspect in two other bid-rigging cases and implicated in several more.