Chennai : For the first time in several years, the ruling party in Tamil Nadu sat on a hunger strike, in which chief minister and deputy chief minister Edapaddi Palaniswami and O Panneerselvam joined in, to protest against the centre’s failure to set up the Cauvery Management Board as ordered by the Supreme Court.

On Tuesday, the chief minister and deputy chief minister joined in other ministers and party cadres on a hunger strike even as opposition parties led by the DMK continued their protests and strikes across Tamil Nadu.

Road and rail roko agitations were on across Tamil Nadu, even as state governor Banwarialal Purihit called on prime minister Narendra Modi in Delhi, over the Cauvery issue.

Traders and shopkeepers also joined in the protest by shutting their establishments.

The DMK and its allies have been protesting for the past few days and continued it on Tuesday, blocked traffic at many places and also tried to stop trains.

The DMK has also called for a Tamil Nadu bandh on April 5 over the issue.

Protests also took place in other cities including Madurai, Tiruchirapalli, Coimbatore, Erode, Salem and Tiruvarur. The farmers too joined in the protests.