Sahroni Urges MUI to Declare Vaping Haram as Drug Findings Fuel Debate Over Total Ban

Push for a nationwide ruling meets debate over its scope

Indonesian lawmaker Ahmad Sahroni has urged the Indonesian Ulema Council (MUI) to declare vaping haram, or forbidden under Islamic teaching, as police seek a total ban and laboratory findings put drug use through electronic cigarettes at the centre of the debate.

Sahroni, deputy chair of Commission III of the House of Representatives, which oversees law enforcement, made his appeal on October 18, 2026. He argued that health risks and the use of vape devices to consume narcotics justified urgent action, even while acknowledging the consequences for sellers and manufacturers.

The demand follows national police chief General Suyudi Ario Seto's October 13 visit to MUI headquarters in Menteng, Central Jakarta. MUI has agreed to examine his proposal and plans to consult experts. Its national leadership has not announced a decision or a timetable for completing the review.

The central disagreement concerns how far a prohibition should reach. Sahroni and Suyudi favour action against vaping broadly. Other lawmakers and industry representatives want restrictions directed at liquids containing prohibited drugs and the people producing or distributing them.

East Java's MUI has also clarified the scope of its Fatwa No. 1 of 2026: it prohibits using electronic cigarettes to consume narcotics, psychotropic substances and other prohibited addictive substances, rather than banning the devices outright. That clarification matters because Suyudi cited East Java's action when asking the national council to support a total prohibition.

What the laboratory tests found

The National Narcotics Agency (BNN) tested 341 samples of vape liquid. According to MUI's April explanation of findings, Suyudi told lawmakers that 11 samples contained cannabinoids and one contained methamphetamine. Another published breakdown described the 11 findings more specifically as synthetic cannabinoids and put the number containing etomidate at 23; MUI's account described etomidate in several samples without giving a number.

Cannabinoids are substances that act on receptors involved in functions such as mood, memory and perception. Synthetic cannabinoids are manufactured chemicals that act on those receptors. Methamphetamine is a powerful stimulant, while etomidate is an anaesthetic used in medical care.

The 11 cannabinoid findings represent about 3.2 percent of the 341 samples, and the single methamphetamine finding represents about 0.3 percent. Details about how the samples were selected and whether different substances appeared in the same samples were not disclosed.

BNN also said it had identified at least 175 new psychoactive substances in Indonesia. These are substances that affect the brain and can produce effects similar to established drugs. The figure covers substances identified in the country, across different forms of drug circulation.

Other BNN findings have involved vape liquids containing ketamine, THC, MDMA, cocaine and synthetic compounds. On January 15, 2026, BNN and the Directorate General of Customs and Excise uncovered an illegal laboratory producing liquid containing etomidate at Sudirman Tower Condominium in South Jakarta.

Why police want to prohibit the devices

Suyudi argues that vape devices provide a convenient way to disguise drugs in liquid form. Fruit scents and ordinary packaging, he said, make products containing narcotics difficult for the public and enforcement officers to identify.

In MUI's account of the meeting, the police chief explained that BNN and police struggle to distinguish the products by appearance because their shape and smell are the same. He identified liquid methamphetamine and cannabis extract as particular concerns.

Suyudi also described the smuggling as a suspected proxy war by international networks seeking to damage Indonesia's younger generation. A proxy war usually means a conflict pursued indirectly through other groups; here, he used the term to describe his assessment of the networks' intentions.

The police chief said he had already proposed a total vape ban to President Prabowo Subianto and received a positive response. Police are seeking both religious guidance from MUI and government regulation, bringing two different kinds of authority into the campaign.

How the proposal developed

Suyudi first raised a prohibition with parliament while serving as BNN chief. His later request as national police chief brought the issue directly to MUI's senior leadership, including general chair Anwar Iskandar.

The main developments span several months:

• January 15, 2026: BNN and customs officers uncovered a laboratory producing vape liquid containing etomidate in South Jakarta.
• April 7: Suyudi presented the vape laboratory findings during a Commission III meeting on the Narcotics and Psychotropics Bill and proposed a prohibition.
• April 10: MUI Fatwa Commission secretary Miftahul Huda called for further investigation of vape ingredients and said MUI had not issued a vape fatwa.
• October 13: Suyudi visited MUI headquarters and requested support for a total prohibition.
• October 14 to 17: MUI leaders outlined plans for a detailed review, including consultation with experts.
• October 18 to 19: Sahroni and other lawmakers set out differing positions on a broad ban, targeted enforcement and protection for small businesses.

The April parliamentary discussion concerned proposed legislation. The October meetings added a request for a religious ruling, with lawmakers also pressing for stronger investigations and product oversight.

What MUI has said about religious status

MUI Fatwa Commission secretary KH Miftahul Huda set out the council's position on products containing drugs in April. He said narcotics fall within khamar, the Islamic category associated with intoxicants, and that their consumption is forbidden.

In its call for further investigation, MUI urged BNN to research and investigate vape ingredients as a basis for health and legal decisions. Huda also supported legislative action against vape use if narcotics were found and restrictions in public places to protect other people from exposure.

A fatwa is a religious opinion issued by Islamic scholars. A government prohibition operates through state law and regulation. For consumers and businesses, the first would guide religious conduct, while the second could determine what may be manufactured, sold or used and what penalties apply.

MUI Fatwa chair Asrorun Niam Sholeh said the October request would receive a detailed examination using several approaches. Deputy general chair Anwar Abbas said on October 16 that experts would be invited before a ruling was issued. He linked Suyudi's concern to his earlier experience leading BNN.

On October 17, MUI official Muhammad Zaitun Rasmin, who leads its ukhuwah or fellowship portfolio, said the Fatwa Division would discuss the request. Speaking at the Hidayatullah Dakwah Centre in East Jakarta, he welcomed efforts to reduce drug abuse and said a ruling could follow confirmation of widespread misuse.

East Java's ruling draws a narrower line

East Java MUI's explanation of Fatwa No. 1 of 2026 places the prohibited act at the centre: using a vape to consume narcotics, psychotropic substances or other forbidden addictive substances. Suyudi described East Java as having prohibited vaping; the provincial council's clarification confines the ruling to drug misuse.

KH Masyhuril Khamis, identified as MUI's halal affairs chair, also separated questions about ingredients and production from concerns about tobacco's effects on health. He favoured regulation suited to those health concerns rather than applying a nonhalal label.

Indonesia's Islamic organisations have previously discussed smoking through a range of religious categories. A forum of the Nahdlatul Ulama Executive Board's Bahtsul Masail institution in Jakarta on February 23 and 24, 2011, described smoking as mubah, meaning permissible, or makruh, meaning discouraged.

That discussion also allowed for a haram judgment when use causes actual harm to a person's mind or body. The current debate therefore involves both the substances inside a vape and the health effects of using it, with the requested national ruling extending beyond the issue of narcotics alone.

Health concerns extend beyond illegal drugs

Professor Tjandra Yoga Aditama, director of postgraduate studies at YARSI University, said vaping itself carries health risks. In comments published on October 19, he cited World Health Organization warnings about nicotine, toxic substances and flavouring chemicals, including findings of nicotine in some products marketed as containing none.

Tjandra identified cardiovascular effects, harm to a developing fetus and disruption of brain development in children and adolescents among the concerns described by WHO. Nicotine is addictive, making the discussion especially relevant to younger users.

He also referred to EVALI, short for electronic cigarette or vaping product use associated lung injury, a serious lung condition identified by the United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. He said adding substances such as etomidate makes the health danger greater and supported BNN's opposition to vape use because of its potential role in drug abuse.

Indonesia's Global Adult Tobacco Survey, conducted through the Health Ministry and WHO, recorded electronic cigarette use at 3 percent in 2021, compared with 0.3 percent in 2011. That is a tenfold increase, or a rise of 2.7 percentage points, showing how much more common vaping became over the decade.

Lawmakers disagree on how wide a ban should reach

Sahroni said public safety should take priority despite the economic consequences. He also promised to encourage police and other authorities to prepare a transition strategy for the industry and suggested businesses research alternatives that are safer and harder to misuse for drugs.

Commission III member Nasir Djamil took a narrower position on October 18. He said liquids containing narcotics should be prohibited while warning that a broad restriction could bankrupt small businesses producing vape products. His proposals included public education, legal consultation and stronger intelligence work involving community groups.

On October 19, Commission IX deputy chair Yahya Zaini backed a fatwa against vape containing liquid narcotics. He called on police and the Food and Drug Supervisory Agency (BPOM) to establish which products contained prohibited substances, investigate producers and strengthen regulation.

Yahya said factories should be closed and owners face criminal penalties where evidence establishes violations. His approach would connect religious guidance with investigations of the businesses responsible for illegal products.

NasDem lawmaker Rudianto Lallo, another Commission III member, supported a careful MUI review covering health, social and legal considerations. He also called for stronger enforcement, education and prevention, with particular attention to protecting young people.

Businesses seek targeted enforcement

Budiyanto, chair of the Indonesian Personal Vaporizer Association (APVI), said his organisation supported action against drug networks but wanted authorities to distinguish compliant businesses from offenders. He argued that enforcement should target those misusing devices, their supply networks and illegal products.

Budiyanto also warned that a total ban could make supervision harder and allow illicit circulation to expand. Fachmi Kurnia, chair of the Indonesian Vape Retailers Association (ARVINDO), supported the East Java ruling's separation of lawful business activity from drug offences.

The competing proposals would affect businesses differently. A total prohibition would reach sellers and manufacturers across the market. Targeted restrictions would centre enforcement on prohibited ingredients and those involved in their production, distribution or use. Sahroni's proposed industry transition strategy addresses the wider disruption anticipated under the broader approach.

International comparisons also contain a substantial numerical disagreement. MUI's October meeting account cited more than 90 countries as having total vape bans, naming Singapore, Thailand, Vietnam, Laos and Brunei Darussalam; Tjandra cited about 35 countries worldwide banning electronic nicotine delivery systems and 12 of 38 WHO Western Pacific members banning sales.

The immediate choices for Indonesia concern the scope of MUI's religious ruling, the products authorities investigate and the rules government adopts. Police, religious leaders, lawmakers and business associations share support for action against narcotics, while differing over whether that requires removing vape devices from the market entirely.

Key Points

• Ahmad Sahroni urged MUI on October 18, 2026, to declare vaping haram, citing health risks and drug misuse.
• Police chief Suyudi Ario Seto requested support for a total prohibition during an October 13 visit to MUI.
• BNN testing of 341 vape liquid samples found cannabinoids in 11 and methamphetamine in one, alongside findings of etomidate.
• MUI plans a detailed review with expert input before deciding on the national proposal.
• East Java MUI says its Fatwa No. 1 of 2026 prohibits using vape devices for prohibited drugs, rather than the devices themselves.
• Lawmakers and industry groups disagree over a total ban versus targeted restrictions, with small businesses among those facing potential consequences.
• Health concerns include nicotine addiction, lung injury and risks to children, adolescents and developing fetuses.