FLC OF A B737-200 RETURNED TO LAND AFTER OBSERVING SMOKE COMING FROM THE CAPT'S INST PANEL AND MOST OF THE ANNUNCIATOR CAUTION LIGHTS ILLUMINATED. EMER RESCUE VEHICLES FOLLOWED ACFT TO GATE.

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PUSHBACK FROM MCI AT XA26Z AFTER 3 HR DELAY AWAITING HSI REPLACEMENT. ACFT WAS DEICED UNEVENTFULLY. DURING TAXI OUT; PLT'S INTERPHONE WAS INTERMITTENT. AMP1 WAS SELECTED AND OPS APPEARED NORMAL. FO ACCOMPLISHED UNEVENTFUL TKOF FROM RWY 1L. DURING CLBOUT; I HAD DIFFICULTY AGAIN USING CAPT ILS/XMITTER. I TOOK CTL AND GAVE RADIOS TO FO WHILE FURTHER TROUBLESHOOTING. PASSING FL220 AT 50 MI S OF MCI AT XB00Z; FO RPTED SMOKE EMANATING BEHIND CAPT'S INST PANEL. WE IMMEDIATELY DONNED OXYGEN MASKS THEN RECEIVED CLRNC TO RETURN TO MCI. SMOKE WAS LIGHT AND APPEARED TO DISSIPATE AFTER SEVERAL MINS. HOWEVER; ALL ANNUNCIATOR/CAUTION LIGHTS ON FORWARD AND OVERHEAD PANELS WERE FULLY ILLUMINATED BRIGHT. ENG AND FLT INSTS OPERATED NORMALLY. WE REVIEWED SMOKE AND FUME PROCS AND INITIATED ILS RWY 1L AT MCI. SELECTING DIM APPEARED TO MITIGATE MOST ERRONEOUS ANNUNCIATOR INDICATIONS. I ACCOMPLISHED UNEVENTFUL LNDG. TAXIED CLR AT XB00Z. HAD FIRE DEPT FOLLOW US TO GATE AS A PRECAUTIONARY MEASURE. ACFT WAS TURNED OVER TO MAINT. FOLLOW-UP REVEALED WATER HAD LEAKED THROUGH PLT'S FORWARD WINDSHIELD ACCUMULATING BEHIND PLT'S INST PANEL; CAUSING SHORT IN CAPT'S ALT ALERT LIGHT MODULE.