I also love those temporarily blinded by hate: Rahul

New Delhi: Congress President Rahul Gandhi on Friday said that hatred was cowardice and he loves all living beings including those temporarily blinded by hatred.

Gandhi made the remarks in a tweet on a day he created a surprise by saying he loved Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

"Hatred is cowardice. I don't care if the entire world is full of hatred. I am not a coward. I will not hide behind hate and anger. I love all living beings, including those temporarily blinded by hatred," Gandhi said.

Earlier in the day, speaking at an event in Pune, Gandhi virtually brought the house down on Friday when he said: "I love Narendra Modi."

In a free-wheeling live interaction with over 5,000 college students, Gandhi took wide-ranging questions from the gathering, largely pertaining to jobs, education, healthcare and some even personal.

Answering a poser from a student, he paused and said: "I love (Prime Minister) Narendra Modi. I really do, seriously. I have no anger against him. I love him. But he has anger towards me."

The comment was greeted with thunderous cheers and applause from the students, stunned even the hosts and the media, coming as it at the height of the Lok Sabha election season when both the ruling and opposition sides are firing poisonous darts at each other.

Some students also raised slogans of Modi, Modi.