Hyderabad: The Election Commission of India (ECI) on Wednesday informed that a ration card, unlike a passport or a birth certificate, is certainly not a conclusive proof of citizenship. The choice of proposed documents for verification of electoral rolls and their evidentiary standards necessarily falls within the discretionary domain of the Commission which may not be substituted subject to reasonableness. Accordingly, it is hereby clarified that the Family Register Certificate under GO Ms. No. 172 dated July 25, 2026 issued by Telangana government can only be treated as equivalent to a ration card and therefore cannot be accepted as one of the designated documents during the verification process under SIR, ECI Secretary Navin Kumar said in communication to Chief Electoral Officer, Telangana. However, the Family Member Certificate issued prior to July 25, 2026 under the old regime (Memo dated 25.06.2013) would be accepted during the verification process under SIR.