Tom Sandoval Hits Back at Claims He 'Groomed' Rachel Leviss

Tom Sandoval is sounding off on claims he "groomed" ex Rachel Leviss ... pointing the finger at Lala Kent for hitting him with the damning label in the first place.

The reality star addressed the allegations during Tuesday's part 1 reunion episode for "Vanderpump Rules" ... where Sandoval and his castmates broke down the season's biggest drama.

Of course, it didn't take long for the grooming allegations to surface ... which Sandoval slammed as "beyond f***ing slander" since Rachel wasn't underage when they had their affair. You can see he's pissed here, as he says that word "implies pedophilia."

Sandoval mainly took issue with Lala ... claiming Rachel only started using the word groomed when the LK dropped the term on 'VPR.'

Lala doubled down on her use of the term, saying ... "It is taking someone who is younger than you and more impressionable than you and someone who is at a higher level of power than the other person."

TS didn't see his affair in the same way though ... claiming Rachel pursued him as much as he pursued her. Rachel is currently suing Sandoval for allegedly recording sexually explicit videos without her consent ... slamming his behavior as "predatory" in the suit.

She's also suing Ariana Madix for allegedly distributing the footage ... blasting it as revenge porn.

Now, Lala did admit during the sit-down that she may have been projecting after her own experience with ex-fiancé Randall Emmett.

Lala added ... "Only Raquel and Tom know what was going on. He is going to see it differently. I tend to lean toward the chick a little more."