The 50-share Nifty slipped 51 points to close below the psychological level of 5,200 at 5,188 levels and the Sensex ended weaker by 151 points to shut shop at 17,151 levels.
The Asian markets ended on a subdued note.
The Hang Seng slipped 0.3% to close at 21,249, Shanghai ended flat at 2,440 levels and Taiwan closed at 7,659, down 17 points.
Meanwhile, the European markets opened on a firm note and were trading higher. CAC, FTSE and DAX have advanced 0.5-1% each in the opening deals.
Back home, Hero MotoCorp ended lower by 8% to close at Rs 2,067 after reporting lower-than-expected 20% year-on-year (y-o-y) growth in net profit at Rs 604 crore for the quarter ended March 2012, due to higher raw material cost.
Analysts had expected a net profit of Rs 626 crore from the world's largest two-wheeled vehicle manufacturer. Total income grew 12% at Rs 6,140 crore on y-o-y basis.
Tata Steel, Maruti Suzuki, Coal India, State Bank of India, Bajaj Auto, Tata Power, Coal India, ICICI Bank, Jindal Steel, DLF, Mahindra & Mahindra, and NTPC were also among the laggards.
On the other hand, HUL, Wipro, TCS, Sun Pharma, BHEL, Infosys and HDFC Bank were among the notable gainers among the Sensex stocks.
Auto, banking and metal stocks were amongst the worst hit in trades today.
The BSE Auto index was the top sectoral loser, down 2.5% or 257 points to shut shop at 10,205 levels.
BSE bank index- Bankex ended weaker by 1.6% or 197 points at 11,663
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