Indian shares ended a choppy session slightly lower on Tuesday due to weak global cues and anxiety ahead of the general election results, due next week.
The Lok Sabha exit poll results will be announced post the completion of all seven phases on June 01.
The actual results will be announced on June 4th. Based on several opinion polls, the NDA political alliance is expected to secure a third term in office, with a high probability of the BJP maintaining its single-party majority.
Global cues were tepid as tensions escalated in the Middle East and investors awaited a swath of global inflation prints for direction.
The benchmark S&P BSE Sensex ended the session down 220.05 points, or 0.29 percent, at 75,170.45 while the broader NSE Nifty index slipped 44.30 points, or 0.19 percent, to close at 22,888.15.
Adani Enterprises, Coal India, BPCL, Power Grid Corp and Adani Ports all fell around 2 percent in the Nifty pack while Grasim, Hero MotoCorp, HDFC Life, SBI Life and Divis Laboratories climbed 2-3 percent.