Bandung – The administration of Bekasi regency will fight against a court ruling in favor of embattled Batak Protestant Church (HKBP) Filadelfia over the construction of their church in Jejalen Jaya, Tambun district.

Deputy Regent Rohim Mintareja said on Thursday that the administration had just obtained information that a private company claimed to be the rightful owner since 1996 of the land on which the church is being built.

"The administration will file a lawsuit to annul the court ruling because the location in question is still in legal dispute," he said after a coordination meeting on West Java public safety in Bandung presided over by West Java Deputy Governor Yusuf Macan Effendi.

The State Administrative Court ruled that HKBP Filadelfia had secured the legal requirements to build a church in the location, but hard-liner groups, residents and the local administration objected to the presence of a church in the area.

Rohim said that should the court ruling be executed, "it would upset public order because of the strong opposition from local residents."