Donald Trump is an avowed teetotaller, so abstinence of alcoholic spirits in Ahmedabad would not have occupied his mind, yet it does beg the question: Why should a state the size of a European nation be penalised for being the birthplace of Mahatma Gandhi? India’s relationship with spirits is at best ambiguous and at worst hypocritical — the state frowns on liquor at official functions, and even some private ones where prominent leaders might be present, while reaping the benefits that come from its taxation. It is a guilty pleasure that comes with high office, since the subsidised watering holes
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