Per-person penalty amendment treated as substantive change, so it could not apply retrospectively to earlier conduct.

A statutory amendment that for the first time introduced a per-person penalty mechanism under section 10 of the Rajasthan Entertainments and Advertisements Tax Act, 1957, was held to be a substantive change rather than a mere clarification. The pre-1998 provision imposed only a maximum penalty of Rs. 500 for the contravention, while the amendment made the penalty expressly per person in specified cases. Because the amendment was not expressed to operate retrospectively, it could not be applied to pre-amendment conduct, and the enhanced per-person penalty was unavailable for the earlier period.

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Issues: Whether, under section 10 of the Rajasthan Entertainments and Advertisements Tax Act, 1957, penalty for admitting persons without valid tickets could be levied at the rate of Rs. 500 per person for the pre-amendment period, and whether the 1998 amendment to section 10 was retrospective or clarificatory.

Analysis: The relevant pre-1998 text of section 10(3) imposed a maximum penalty of Rs. 500 for the contravention, while the 1998 amendment expressly introduced a per person basis in specified cases. The statutory scheme and the Statement of Objects and Reasons showed that the amendment was intended to make the penalty provision more practicable and stringent, which indicated a substantive change rather than a mere clarification. Since the amendment itself newly provided for penalty per person, it could not be read as retrospective so as to sustain the substantially enhanced penalty imposed for the earlier period.

Conclusion: The per person penalty could not be imposed for the pre-amendment period, and the amendment was not clarificatory or retrospective.

Final Conclusion: The assessee succeeded, the High Court's view was set aside, and the Taxation Board's view limiting the penalty was restored.

Ratio Decidendi: A statutory amendment that for the first time introduces a per person penalty mechanism is a substantive change and, absent express retrospectivity, cannot be applied to events occurring before its commencement.

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