PM greeted with violence in Gujarat

More than 800 people are believed to have been killed across Gujarat in a wave of revenge killings

AHMEDABAD, India (CNN) -- Indian Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee has arrived in Ahmedabad for a one-day tour of the riot-torn state of Gujarat Thursday as the death toll in the state rises.

The state remained calm but tense for the prime minister's visit after violence claimed the lives of two more Muslims, one hacked to death and his body set ablaze, the other stabbed.

This brings to 7 the number of people who have died in the 24-hour period ahead of the prime minister's visit. Five Muslims were killed in Ahmedabad Wednesday.

Vajpayee went first to Godhra, the epicentre of one of the worst instances of communal violence, to inspect the burnt-out hulk of a train carrying Hindu devotees whose torching by a Muslim mob on February 27 triggered India's worst religious violence in a decade.

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His visit will take in the areas worst hit by the dispute between Hindus and Muslims and comes against a backdrop of heavy criticism from the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) of the Gujarat state government's handling of the communal violence.

The prime minister will be briefed by the state administration on the relief and rehabilitation efforts in 46 camps housing over 71,000 people affected by the violence.

Narendra Modi, chief minister of Gujarat and member of Vajpayee's ruling BJP, has come under fire for not doing more to clamp down on the violence that has racked the western Indian state.

Officials have told local newspapers that Vajpayee will ask Modi what steps the administration has taken to restore peace.

''The army is at the state government's disposal as are the paramilitary forces. The PM wants to know why Modi has not sought any further assistance to restore law and order when the forces available are not up to the job,'' an official told the Times of India newspaper.

A proposed temple site in the sacred town of Ayodhya was the flashpoint for violence after the train carrying Hindu campaigners was firebombed by a suspected group of Muslims in February.

The train attack sparked bloody mob riots and secular violence throughout Gujarat.

The Hindu campaigners want to build the temple on the ruins of a mosque, destroyed nine years ago by Hindus who believe it was built on the birthplace of a Hindu god.

The mosque's destruction triggered nationwide riots at the time that left thousands dead.

Following the train attack, hundreds of people were torched alive and buildings and homes razed until security forces gained control of the situation in mid-March.

The estimated death toll has been put at more than 800.

As a result, paramilitary forces in full anti-riot gear were deployed in and around the town to restore order and tens of thousands of police were deployed across the country.

Nearly 20,000 arrests were made in an effort to prevent further religious violence.

-- CNN New Delhi Bureau Chief Satinder Bindra contributed to this report