KARACHI, OCTOBER 20: The Hizbul is at war with itself. Two factions of the outfit in Kotli district of Pakistan-Occupied Kashmir (PoK) have been fighting it out and there have been dozens of casualties on both sides besides others getting killed in the crossfire, according to local media reports.While details of the fighting have been hushed up in Pakistan, media reports say in recent weeks Kotli has witnessed gunfights between the two factions and the security forces have just stood by and watched.It all began when the Amir or head of the Kashmir Jamaat-e-Islami, Rasihi Turabi, of which the Hizb is a part, tried to replace the commander of the Hizb in PoK, Masood Sarfaraz. This wing of the Hizb is commonly known as the ``Pir Panjal Regiment''. Sarfaraz refused to step down.Observers say the Hizb now has three factions. The first, which was set up in J&K in 1990 with the blessings of the Jamaat-e-Islami, is commanded by Syed Salahuddin. Another faction is headed by one Osama Bhai. This appeared when Al Badar Mujahideen, led by Bakht Zameen Khan, broke away from Jamaat-e-Islami in 1998 to set up a separate entity. The third faction - the Hizbul Mujahideen of PoK - was set up in 1999 by Turabi and had Masood Sarfaraz as its commander.According to sources, it was the rising number of complaints against Sarfaraz, ranging from arbitrary use of funds, mismanagement in training camps and a high-handed attitude towards the party leadership, that prompted Turabi to replace Sarfaraz. Jamaat-e-Islami activists say Sarfaraz had openly accused the leaders of compromising the Kashmir cause under American pressure. He was, nevertheless, present at the meetings in March-April this year which deliberated on the decision to offer a cease-fire to India.Following Sarfaraz's refusal to step down, Turabi himself took control of Sarfaraz's headquarters in Kotli at the head of an armed contingent earlier this month. And this sparked off the armed confrontation which is still raging in Kotli.Observers say the fighting indicates a disturbing trend of armed groups increasingly showing signs of indiscipline, a phenomenon that has already been witnessed in Afghanistan.
