The Foreign Ministry said that President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo's trip to Australia would be rescheduled because "current development has required the president to stay in Indonesia".
National police spokesman Boy Rafli Amar told a news conference Saturday that one elderly man died from asthma attack after being exposed to tear gas, and more than 90 police and soldiers were injured, eight of them seriously.
"We regret the event at night when the protestors should have disbanded but instead turned to rioting", Joko said.
Up to 150,000 people are estimated to have marched through the capital, shutting down major streets as they demanded the immediate jailing of Jakarta's governor over comments he made about the Koran.
Ethnic Chinese make up about one percent of Indonesia's 250 million people, and they typically do not enter politics.
She said jihadist-run accounts on social media urged sympathizers of these groups to fan the flame of jihad in Indonesia, the world's most populous Muslim nation.
"He is not Muslim but he humiliated the Quran", protester Muhammad Said told Reuters news agency. The verse implies that Muslims should not choose non-Muslims as leaders.
Fifteen people were arrested for looting a minimart in north Jakarta, while 10 were being investigated for allegedly whipping up violence, Amar said, noting that the two incidents were not directly related.
Ethnic Chinese have born the brunt of social unrest in Indonesia, partly due to their perceived wealth.
The protest was triggered by accusations that Purnama, better known by his nickname Ahok, insulted Islam by criticizing opponents who used Koranic references to attack him ahead of an election in February.
"We are here because we want to defend the verses of God that have been abused by Ahok", said Nasrullah Achmad, who came from Bekasi, a Jakarta satellite city, with dozens of others from his Islamic study group. The banner reads: "Put Ahok in prison".
He has a reputation as a no-nonsense reformer with little patience for the corruption widely blamed for the chaos of an overcrowded city, and remains popular despite the protests.
Riding into the crowd on top of a truck with large loudspeakers attached to it, the head of the Islamic Defenders Front (FPI) Rizieq Syihab wore a green turban and a white top - the colours of the hardline group.
Mr Widodo, a Muslim, has vowed not to interfere in any legal proceedings against Mr Purnama, who is an ally of the president.
Indonesia Institute president Ross Taylor said the cancelled visit would be a great disappointment for two leaders who had overseen a very strong rebuild of the bilateral relationship.
They alleged that his opponents in next year's gubernatorial election had used a verse in the Koran to deceive voters to prevent him from winning another term.
"[The candidates] need a good communication strategy to ensure that their chances of winning are still high", he said.
"Upholding the law is an obligation", the Front's leader, Rizieq Shihab, said as she stood on top of a vehicle outside the palace.
Source: One dead, 12 hurt at Indonesia protest against Jakarta governor
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