Dayyanis and sectarianism among the Babis

The genesis of the Bábí and Bahá’í Faiths in Rasht dates back to the Bábí period when apparently a number of its inhabitants embraced the Báb’s movement. By early 1850s, in the confused state following the Báb’s martyrdom, the Bábí community fractured and various pockets of the Bábís turned to different Bábí leaders for inspiration and guidance. It was around 1271 AH [1854] that one of the Rasht’s Bábís, a certain Karbalá’í Ibráhím Samsár [“dealer of second-hand goods”] Rashtí twice went to Adharbayjan and met Mírzá Asadu’lláh Dayyán, and became a staunch follower of him, a sentiment which he shared with other Bábís of the region as well. At the present, not much is known of these Dayyánís and they presumably disappeared as a group.

Around 1270 AH [1853], several Bábís migrated from Qazvin to the nearby Lahijan, which was the major town of Gilan at that time. One of them, Siyyid Javád, had been a Shaykhí in Qazvin – which had a robust Shaykhí-Bábí community – and succeeded in converting a number of residents to the Báb’s Faith. Siyyid Javád however threw his lot with Mírzá Yahyá Azal and tried to keep his group of Bábís isolated from the other Bábís of Lahijan who had become followers of Bahá’u’lláh. On an occasion when Siyyid Javád was away in Qazvín, one of his associates, Mírzá ‘Alí Ashraf (known later as the poet ‘Andalíb), searched out the Bahá’ís and became convinced that Baha’u’llah was the new Manifestation. Soon Mírzá ‘Alí Ashraf succeeded in converting Siyyid Javád as well as the others Azalís.

(Memoirs of a Bahá'í in Rasht 1889-1903: Autobiography of Mírzá Yahyá `Amídu'l-Atibbá Hamadání translated and edited by Ahang Rabbani)

https://bahai-library.com/rabbani_memoirs_bahai_rasht