The five who burnt to death, including two women, were all Muslims, a police spokesman said.
The attack took place on Tuesday, when a mob torched three houses in Abasna village on the outskirts of Ahmedabad, which has witnessed sectarian clashes for the past month.
The charred bodies were found on Wednesday morning after firefighters put out the blaze. Six other Muslims, including two women, were admitted to hospital with serious burn injuries.
Local leader, Madar Singh, said the village of 1,500 people had no history of tensions between Hindus and Muslims, who make up 25 per cent of the population.
“We have lived in harmony for more than 100 years and we respect each others customs. It is outsiders who have done this. We were helpless as we had all gone off to sleep,” he said.
Police said they believed the crime was carried out by people from a nearby village.
“A group of 15 to 20 people came to the village and burnt the houses. The villagers are also not in the position to identify them as it was late night,” said a police official. No arrests have yet been made.
Jumasha Ramzaan Shah, 55, caretaker of the village mosque, said he and his family were petrified of further attacks and would move away.
“Three generations of our family have been brought up in this village, but we no longer feel safe here. We will go to... try to start a new life.”
Another three people died on Wednesday, two of whom were shot by police, as mobs rioted in the streets, police said.
Two people suffered stab wounds in clashes in Anand, the hub of Gujarat’s milk cooperative movement, they said, adding that 10 others, including three policemen, were injured.
The fresh fighting comes on the eve of a day-long on Thursday by Vajpayee, who will get his first up-close look at the devastation in Gujarat, the largest state governed by his party.
Vajpayee is due to visit the site of the Feb 27 train massacre in Godhra and unveil a comprehensive package to help those who lost their homes or businesses through arson.
RELIEF CAMPS: The prime minister will also tour displaced resident relief camps, whose miserable conditions were denounced in a report released on Wednesday by Amnesty International.
The London-based human rights group said police had not adequately protected the camps, which have faced attacks including stone-throwing and petrol bombs.
At the Vatwa camps in Ahmedabad “audio cassettes containing the chants “Maro! Maro!” (“Kill! Kill!”) have been repeatedly played at night on loudspeakers to further terrorize the camp dwellers”, Amnesty said.
“Although the vast majority of the victims of the violence belong to the Muslim community, reports indicate that the few camps in Ahmedabad which are hosting victims from the majority (Hindu) community... are receiving more visits from government authorities and more regular rations,” it said.
Amnesty called for an authority to protect the camps other than Gujarat’s police, which “failed to intervene during the violence and sometimes even actively connived with the attackers”.
Some 50,000 people live in relief camps in Ahmedabad, according to officials, but Amnesty said the figure could be as high as 75,000.
Some 40,000 people live in similar camps elsewhere in the state.
Amnesty criticized the Gujarat government for not ensuring a safe environment for residents to return home.—AFP