Rahul Gandhi on Sunday said that Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s silence on crimes like rape and murder was meant to send out the message that the women of this country should not expect anything from him.

Rahul Gandhi tweeted: “Apradh aur ahankar Bhajpa ke paryay ban chuke hain. Na sharmindgi, na ek shabd, sirf chuppi. Pradhan mantri ka sandesh saaf hai — mahilayen mujhse ummeed na rakhe (Crime and conceit have become synonymous with the BJP. No shame, not even a word, only silence. The Prime Minister’s message is clear — women should expect nothing from him).”

He posted a video that purported to show the involvement of BJP leaders in crimes against women in the recent past, and said: “Pradhan Mantri ka nari samman sirf naron tak seemit hai (The Prime Minister’s respect for women is limited to slogans).”

The video highlighted the horrors of the Unnao case in Uttar Pradesh that led to a former BJP MLA’s conviction for rape and murder; the Hathras rape and murder, where the immediate family was not even allowed to conduct the last rites; and Kathua in Jammu and Kashmir, where BJP leaders held a rally in support of the rape-and-murder accused.

Rahul raised the issue at a rally in Cheruthurthy, Kerala, after the completion of the day’s leg of the Bharat Jodo Yatra. He recalled the BJP’s silence on the recent Uttarakhand and Moradabad atrocities on women and asked what the point of saluting the Tricolour was if one didn’t respect and protect the Indian people.

Modi had the opportunity to speak on women’s safety in Sunday’s Mann Ki Baat programme to a nation outraged at the alleged murder of a teenaged woman who worked at an Uttarakhand resort, which has led to the arrest of a BJP leader’s son. The Prime Minister, instead, spoke about the arrival of African cheetahs to the country, which he said had filled the 130 crore Indians with pride.

He asked people to suggest names for the cheetahs and said: “Ye bhi batayen, aakhir insan ko animals ke saath kaisa behave karna chahiye (Also tell us, after all, how humans should behave with animals).”

The subjects Modi dwelt on in his monthly radio broadcast were the renaming of Chandigarh airport, the use of polythene bags, Khadi products, the anniversary of the 2016 “surgical strike” on PoK terror camps, sign language, and Navratra, arguing there was a dazzle of festivity everywhere.

Home minister Amit Shah too has remained silent on the Uttarakhand case and the arrest of a BJP leader’s son.

Uttarakhand Congress leaders have accused the state’s BJP government of destroying evidence by demolishing a part of the resort and alleged that another woman had disappeared from the resort.