Many Goanabadi Dervishes also were arrested, including Amir Eslami and Afshin Karampour, both attorneys, who went to the office of Kovar’s local governor to find a solution for the crisis. Many Dervishes who tried to go to Kovar from nearby towns were also apprehended before getting there. A number of websites affiliated with hardliners later claimed that the clash started because Dervishes insulted and assaulted a seminary student named Shahbazi, who had agitated against Gonabadi Dervishes. At that time, there were about 150 Gonabadi Dervish households in Kovar.