Mangaluru : BJP’s ‘Nava Karnataka Parivarthana Yatra’ which reached the city culminated at the Nehru Maidan here on Saturday.

The rally entered Gundiya in Dakshina Kannada on November 8 from Sakleshpur. After taking a break on November 9, the rally passed through Sullia, Puttur and Belthangady on Friday where public meetings were held.

Similarly, on Saturday, the rally passed through Bantwal, followed by Moodbidri and Mangaluru where public meetings were held.

Addressing public meetings at these three places, BJP State president B.S. Yeddyurappa called upon partymen to work from the booth level for a Congress-free Karnataka. He said that party ticket for the Assembly elections will be given as per public opinion gathered through a survey that was being conducted by the party. Partymen should be united in their fight against the Congress. “Not all will get party ticket (for the Assembly elections). Those who are denied ticket will be rewarded with posts if the party comes to power,” he said.

Leader of the Opposition in the Legislative Council K.S. Eshwarappa said that the BJP will come to power in the forthcoming elections. The BJP government will bring in legislation to ban cow slaughter, he said.

Union Minister D.V. Sadananada Gowda, Udupi MP Shobha Karandlaje, Dakshina Kannada MP Nalin Kumar Kateel, former Ministers B. Sriramulu, Kumar Bangarappa, Srinivas Poojary, Former MLA N. Yogish Bhat, MLA captain Ganesh Karnik, MP Shobha Karandlaje, former MP Tejaswini Gowda and other BJP leaders were present in the event held.

The former Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee spokesperson Harikrishna Bantwal, a long-time aide of senior Congress leader B. Janardhan Poojary, joined the BJP here on Saturday.

Mr. Bantwal, a Billava community leader, was associated with the Congress for nearly three decades. Mr. Bantwal joined the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh in 1972. He was the general secretary of the BJP’s Bantwal unit in 1981. After being denied party ticket in 1983, Mr. Bantwal left the BJP and joined the Congress. He contested as rebel Congress candidate in the 2015 Legislative Council election from the local bodies constituency in Dakshina Kannada and Udupi. The Congress later expelled him from the party for six years.