The Punjab government on Tuesday undertook before the high court that it would not proceed further with the selection process for the recruitment of 197 excise and taxation inspectors.The Punjab government on Tuesday undertook before the high court that it would not proceed further with the selection process for the recruitment of 197 excise and taxation inspectors. (Getty Images/iStockphoto/ Representational image)The statement was made during the hearing of a plea by one Alka and three other candidates challenging the recruitment process. They alleged there were malpractices, security lapses, database anomalies and a lack of transparency in the examination, but no effective action was taken by the respondents despite being informed. The respondents proceeded to issue counselling notices and continued with the recruitment process, the petitioners had told the court seeking quashing of the February 2 advertisement, and examination conducted on May 31 and the result declared by the Punjab Subordinate Selection Board (PSSB) on June 23.“The petitioners have also obtained material showing that certain individuals were allegedly issued more than one application number/admit card and participated more than once in the same recruitment process, with such candidates appearing in the merit list under multiple application numbers. If established upon production of records, such irregularity strikes at the very root of equal opportunity in public employment,” the plea mentioned.During the hearing, the board told the court that it merely acted as the recruiting agency. The discrepancies pointed out were attributable to the candidates themselves, and the petitioners failed to secure the prescribed cut-off marks in their respective categories, the board stated.The court has deferred the hearing to July 30 and directed that the original record of the entire selection process be produced on the next date of hearing.