Kolkata: Sparking widespread disbelief and disgust, actor-turned-Trinamool Congress MP Tapas Pal - one of the biggest names in Bengali films for over three decades - was caught on a video threatening to gun down his Marxist rivals and "unleash his boys for raping" women.

As the hate speech drew flak from all and sundry and shamed even his partymen, Pal, who has used invective against political opponents earlier also, denied uttering the word "rape" , and argued he had spoken in the heat of the moment.