Sensex falls 285 points on political uncertainty

The Sensex on Tuesday plunged by a hefty 285 points after DMK,the UPAs largest ally,quit the ruling coalition,sparking an across-the-board selling. Markets also reacted cautiously to the Reserve Bank of Indias rate cut as the sentiment was hit by the central banks statement that scope for future rate cuts were limited.

The Sensex ended the day 285.10 points lower at 19,008.10. The index has lost 562.34 points in the last three sessions. The NSE Nifty ended lower by 89.30 points to 5,745.95. The Sensex at one stage plummeted 300 points to trade below 19,000 level. Markets tried to stage a recovery after finance minister P Chidambarams remark that government enjoyed majority and it was absolutely stable. But weak European cues did not aid the recovery.