Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Thursday launched a scathing attack on Prime Minister Narendra Modi over the sexual assault case involving JD(S) leader and NDA’s Hassan candidate Prajwal Revanna, saying the PM is seeking votes for a “mass rapist”.

Addressing a rally in Karnataka’s Shivamogga, Gandhi said that what Prajwal Revanna did was not a “sex scandal” but a “mass rape” and charged ‘PM Modi with supporting him in the elections’.

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“Prime Minister Narendra Modi is seeking votes for a ‘mass rapist’. Prajwal Revanna raped hundreds of women and made their obscene videos…And Narendra Modi, from a packed stage, supports that rapist and says – ‘If you vote for this rapist, it will help me’,” he said.

Earlier in the day, Gandhi demanded an apology from the PM for “endorsing a person who has mass raped 400 women”.

“The biggest issue here is the Revanna case, the person who has mass raped 400 women and he was endorsed by PM Modi. First, Prime Minister Modi should answer and apologise to the women,” he told a news agency.

JD(S) leader Prajwal Revanna, the grandson of former PM HD Deve Gowda, is NDA’s joint candidate from Karnataka’s Hassan Lok Sabha seat. Before his sex scandal surfaced, PM Modi had reportedly campaigned for him.

The Congress has been claiming that both — the BJP and the Prime Minister — knew about Prajwal’s “Crimes” and yet he was given a ticket and Modi sought votes for him.

However, the Karnataka BJP has denied having any prior knowledge about the case.

Earlier on Wednesday, Gandhi had slammed Modi for “maintaining shameful silence” on the gruesome crimes against women by the NDA Lok Sabha candidate.

“Knowing everything, why did they promote the monster who exploited hundreds of daughters just for the sake of votes? After all, how did such a big criminal escape from the country with such ease?” Gandhi asked.

Referring to the sex assault allegations against BJP MP Brijbushan Sharan Singh, and several other similar cases involving the ruling party leaders, the Gandhi scion said Modi’s “silent support” is boosting the morale of criminals.

“From Kaiserganj to Karnataka and Unnao to Uttarakhand, the Prime Minister’s silent support to the culprits who targeted daughters, is boosting the morale of criminals across the country. Is being part of Modi’s ‘political family’ a ‘guarantee of safety’ for criminals?” he asked.