Why Red Hat Enterprise Linux 4 system hangs with "kernel BUG at kernel/exit.c:904!" message in /var/log/messages file ?

Issue

A Red Hat Enterprise Linux 4 Server was hung with the panic:

kernel BUG at kernel/exit.c:904!
invalid operand: 0000 [#1]
SMP
Modules linked in: parport_pc lp parport autofs4 i2c_dev i2c_core sunrpc cpufreq_powersave md5 ipv6 dm_mirror joydev dm_mod button battery ac ehci_h
   cd uhci_hcd i500ac edac_mc hw_random bnx2 bonding(U) ext3 jbd cciss sd_mod scsi_mod
CPU:    0
EIP:    0060:[<c0124cc5>]    Not tainted VLI
EFLAGS: 00210046  (2.6.9-78.ELsmp)
EIP is at next_thread+0xc/0x3f
eax: 00000000  ebx: e87570f0  ecx: 0030eff4  edx: f7f4a1b0
esi: 000bb0b4  edi: 0005a489  ebp: 03a97138  esp: f07e9f8c
ds: 007b  es: 007b  ss: 0068

Call Trace:
 [<c012f536>] sys_times+0x56/0x1c5
 [<c01265f5>] sys_gettimeofday+0x53/0xac
 [<c02e09db>] syscall_call+0x7/0xb
 [<c02e007b>] __lock_text_end+0x880/0x107d
Code: 85 c0 89 d3 74 05 e8 53 9c ff ff 53 e8 b9 fb ff ff 0f b6 44 24 04 c1 e0 08 50 e8 ab fb ff ff 89 c2 8b 80 f0 04 00 00 85 c0 75 08 <0f> 0b 88 03
   ae 25 2f c0 0f b6 80 04 05 00 00 84 c0 7e 14 a1 80
02:27:25 oid1 kernel:  <0>Fatal exception: panic in 5 seconds