Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla recognised Rahul Gandhi as the leader of opposition on Wednesday, a day after the Congress communicated its decision to name him for the position to the Lok Sabha Secretariat. In a notification issued on Wednesday, the Lok Sabha Secretariat said Gandhi, leader of the Indian National Congress, had officially been recognised as the leader of opposition in the Lok Sabha with effect from June 9. The Congress MP from Rai Bareli in Uttar Pradesh has been recognised as the leader of opposition under Section 2 of the Salary and Allowances of Leaders of Opposition in Parliament Act, 1977. Gandhi, who earlier in the day joined Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju in escorting the newly-elected Birla to the speaker's chair, thanked Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge for his appointment to the role. "I thank Congress president @kharge ji, and all the Congress leaders and 'babbar sher' karyakartas from across the country for