Romanian media described Kovacs's performance as shameful after Steaua coach Constantin Galca had to make three substitutions in the first 28 minutes of Sunday's game, with strikers Raul Rusescu and Claudiu Keseru and defender Iasmin Latovlevici all injured in fouls.
Rusescu, downed by Targu Mures midfielder Gabriel Muresan's elbow, and Keceru, who suffered concussion after a challenge by Senegalese midfielder Ousmane N'Doye, were taken to hospital.
Hours after the match, Keseru said he could not remember when and why he had been substituted.
Steaua accused Kovacs of influencing the outcome of the match and Romanian newspapers and websites described the game as a scandal.
"The Romanian champions have lost their first away game in the championship after nearly two years, 1-0 at Targu Mures, following Istvan Kovacs's outrageous refereeing that left a bitter taste to everyone who watched the game," Steaua said.
It was Steaua's first away defeat in the league since their 3-1 loss at Brasov on Nov. 26 2012.
Steaua, the 1986 European Cup winners and Romania's most successful club, also accused Kovacs of committing a number of errors, including not awarding them a penalty in the second half and wrongly booking Cristian Tanase for diving instead.
Gazeta Sporturilor, one of the country's most popular newspapers, gave a referee's performance mark of zero out of 10 for the first time.
Despite suffering their second defeat this season, Steaua top the standings with 28 points from 12 matches, followed by CFR Cluj on 26. Targu Mures are fifth on 22.
Following the injuries Galca has included four players from the junior team for their national cup match at Politehnica Iasi on Tuesday.
(Reporting by Angel Krasimirov; editing by Clare Lovell)
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