Senior most Lok Sabha member Manikrao Gavit of Congress has been appointed as the protem Speaker by President Pratibha Patil today.
A nine-term Member of Parliament, 75-year-old Gavit will perform the duties of the Speaker till the election of a new Speaker on June 3.
Gavit was administered oath by the President at a brief function at Rashtrapati Bhavan which was attended among others by Vice President Hamid Ansari, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Parliamentary Affairs Minister P K Bansal.