New Delhi, Aug. 21: Members of Parliament are no strangers to a stink. Their colleagues and rivals raise it only too often.

But the onslaught on their nostrils in the Rajya Sabha this afternoon was so fierce that affairs of the state had to wait for hours as stench-busters went about their job, reports our special correspondent.

Midway through question hour, a sudden smell of chemicals forced the members to draw chairman Bhairon Singh Shekhawat’s attention.

Even spraying of fresheners did not help, and Shekhawat had to adjourn the House several times.

Later, CSIR scientists were called in to assist the security staff and engineers in getting to the bottom of the problem. They discovered that the sanitation staff had sprayed mosquito repellents and insecticides close to the air-conditioning plant by mistake. This was sucked into the AC duct and later released into the House, which caused the stench.

A release issued in the evening said the “pungent smell” had wafted into the house “due to a malfunctioning air-conditioning duct, which has been rectified”.