The Congress on Wednesday said presiding officers in legislatures are expected to be fair, even-handed and non-partisan, and cannot display their biases or their loyalty to the ruling party.

The assertion by Congress general secretary in-charge communications Jairam Ramesh did not name anyone, but came soon after Rajya Sabha Chairman Jagdeep Dhankhar rejected Leader of Opposition Mallikarjun Kharge's point of order that Rajya Sabha cannot discuss about a Lok Sabha member or anyone who is not a member of the Upper House.

On March 13, Kharge had raised a point of order on the assertion by Leader of the House and Union minister Piyush Goyal's demand that Congress leader Rahul Gandhi apologise for his democracy remarks in the UK.

"Presiding Officers in Legislatures are expected to be fair, even-handed and non-partisan. They cannot display their biases or their loyalty to the ruling party," Ramesh said.

"They must command respect by their actions not demand respect by a never-ending flow of sermons," he said.

While rejecting Kharge's point of order, Dhankhar said after bestowing earnest consideration, he is of the firm view that there can be no issue or individual beyond the purview of discussion in the Rajya Sabha and the same is exclusively subject to regulation by the House and the Chairman.

"In view of categorical and firm constitutional prescriptions, I cannot persuade myself to sustain the point of order raised by the Hon’ble Leader of the Opposition Mallikarjun Kharge and the same is hereby declined," Dhankhar said.

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