Victorian Liberal candidate Gurpal Singh quits over comments on rape, paedophilia

A Liberal candidate has been forced to resign after it emerged he said the perpetrator was the "real victim" in response to a woman's account of being raped and abused.

Source: Liberal Party

A federal Liberal candidate who linked gay marriage to paedophilia and said an alleged rapist was the “real victim” in online comments has resigned.

Liberal candidate for the Victorian seat of Scullin, Gurpal Singh, came under fire on Thursday for his Facebook comments saying he had "no sympathy" for an alleged rape victim who detailed her experiences in an SBS Punjabi article posted in May last year. 

While Prime Minister Scott Morrison stood by him after his homophobic comments were revealed earlier this week, on Thursday night, the Liberal Party said Mr Singh had been asked to resign. 

In the May 2018 comments Mr Singh said: "It's shameful that a married woman suffering family violence can go to such extent."

"She skimmed her lover, husband and father of her two children for all these years. And now she alleges rape. Was she kept locked all these year?" 

In another comment he said: "The real victim is the husband."