The scene at the National Stock Exchange was even more ebullient with the S&P CNX Nifty index registering a historic jump of 7.8 per cent to close at 1,044.45 points - a gain of 76 points.

Even the Skindia GDR Index reacted likewise, setting a new record by rising 13.01 per cent to 674.67 points during mid-session on the London Stock Exchange.

The Sensex last recorded such a significant gain on June 17, 1998, when it soared by 239.90 points. Interestingly, the `Chautala effect' was prominently felt between 12.40 pm and 1 pm when the NSE was closed on account of a technical snag.

Carryforward rates on BSE hovered in the band of 10-12 per cent annualised. At thebeginning of the badla session the net outstanding positions for which vyaj badla funding was required was marked at Rs 1,240.67 crore. The gross long purchase positions were however pegged at Rs 1,486.22 crore while the short positions continued to remain at a low of Rs 237.55 crore. Though the badla rates have remained unchanged over their previous week's levels, the Sensex has registered a net recovery of 3.8 per cent over April 10, when the index had closed at 3,441 points.

The marginal decline in the badla rates, according to brokers, was on account of the steep fall in the requirement for funds as over 10 large cap stocks attracted backwardation charges during the session which included index heavyweights like ITC, ACC, BSES and HLL.

Trading on the NSE stopped from 12:25 pm and resumed again at 1:00 pm due to a technical problem relating to the relay process on the trading system. As a result the NSE was open for an additional 35 minutes and closed at 4:05 pm on Friday.

Among the main-line stocksonly Hindustan Lever and MTNL closed below the prescribed 8 per cent limit. The index actually looked like a derivative product, said a BSE broker in the light of the jump registered by the 28 other stocks in the Sensex, which were locked at the upper limit.

The trigger to the markets came a little after mid-afternoon as the INLD chief Om Prakash Chautala declared his unconditional support to the BJP-led Government.

The markets heaved a sigh of relief as the political drama took a new and fresh turn as the BJP-led government looked set to prove its majority on the floor of the house and the possibility of the Finance Bill passing through. Markets are hopeful now that the Patents Bill and the Insurance Regulatory Authority Bill will also see a safe passage.

The market's about turn caught bear operators offguard. "Short sellers were caught unawares as they rushed to cover their positions as the Chautala-led INLD made its presence felt. Most of the stocks hit the upper limit of the circuit breaker in thelast hour of trading and the Sensex jumped by 215 points over its previous close," said Amisha Vohra, a BSE broker at Network Investment and Finance.

The Sensex opened on a steady note at 3,353.61 points, with operators covering short positions on the last day of the settlement on the BSE."Technically the market has, from a high of 3,817 points, come down to the 3,350 level. A corrective pull of 62 per cent should take the market to the level of 3,628 points in the short term," said Malay Sameer, assistant vice-president at Apple Mutual Fund. For the better part of the day the Sensex moved in a narrow groove and touched a low of 3,348.60 points.

However, as reports of DMK and Chautala giving unconditional support to the BJP government poured in, the Sensex bounced back. Towards the closing the Sensex touched a high of 3,384.62 points before settling at 3,572.91 points, up 215.79 points.

Players confirm institutional investor interest in the market was also very high. Leading pivotals like Reliance werequoted at Rs 126.40 and SBI at Rs 172.60. ITC touched Rs 970.25 to hit the upper limit of the circuit breaker. HLL touched a new high of Rs 2,319 before settling at Rs 2,275.

Software stocks bounced back smartly from lower levels. Most software stocks including Pentafour Software at Rs 1,144.75, Satyam Computer Rs 1,328, Infosys Technologies Rs 2,868.25, Tata Infotech Rs 1,403, Wipro Rs 3,436, Rolta India Rs 130.10 hit the upper limit of the circuit filter along with counters like DSQ Software Rs 280.50, Silverline Industries Rs 214.30 and KLG Systel at Rs 225.70.

Pharma scrips like Ranbaxy Laboratories moved up from a low of Rs 480 to Rs 588.25. Rhone Poulenc moved up to Rs 1,342.25. Other pharma majors like Glaxo, Hoechst Marion Roussel, Wockhardt, Dr Reddy's Labs, Nicholas Piramal also flared up.

The only casualty in the pharma sector was Pfizer which hit the lower end of circuit at Rs 1,022.25 on NPPA's decision to bring some of the MNC drugs under price control.

FMCG stocks recoveredenergetically with Reckitt & Colman hitting the upper end of the circuit at Rs 379.25. Others scrips like Britannia, Dabur, Colgate, P&G, Cadbury and Nestle all closed on a firm note.