From labourer to ‘Lottery King’: The rise of Santiago Martin, leading purchaser of electoral bonds

Martin’s company purchased electoral bonds worth Rs 1,368 crore between April 2019 and January 2024, as per details uploaded on the website of the Election Commission of India (ECI).

Chennai: From migrating to Myanmar as a labourer to make ends meet, to returning home and building an empire that now includes an array of businesses by selling lottery tickets, Santiago Martin’s meteoric rise echoes a 'rags-to-riches' story, though a controversial one.

His company, Future Gaming and Hotel Services, stands out as the leading purchaser of electoral bonds, intended for donation to political parties, which were deemed illegal by the Supreme Court last month. This occurred at a time when companies owned by Martin were under scrutiny from several central investigating agencies.

The BJP has emerged as the largest benefactor of electoral bonds, according to data published by the Election Commission of India.

Martin’s company acquired electoral bonds amounting to Rs 1,368 crore between April 2019 and January 2024, as per information available on the ECI's website.

His life is a study of contrast – while agencies like Enforcement Directorate (ED) and Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) brought him under their net in cases of fraud and conducted searches at premises owned by him, Martin was awarded ‘Highest Income Tax payer’ by the Income Tax department.

Allegations against Martin include that he was printing more lottery tickets than allowed by the state governments. In 2016, 2018, and 2023, the 59-year-old businessman was raided by central agencies, which attached properties worth Rs 457 crore under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act in connection with a case linked to the alleged loss of over Rs 900 crore to the Sikkim government.

Beginning his life as a labourer in his teenage years by working in Yangon, Martin founded the Martin Lottery Agencies Limited in 1988 in Coimbatore, a city that he is closely associated with to date, after his return from Myanmar. From then, there was no looking back for Martin, who became very famous as he sold lottery tickets, winning which was an instant way of becoming rich.

Martin, an OBC Christian, befriended influential figures in almost every political party that mattered in states where his firms functioned. In Tamil Nadu, he was closely associated with the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK), and in Kerala, he had a good rapport with the Left Democratic Front (LDF). His donation of Rs 2 crore to Deshabimani, the CPI(M) mouthpiece in Kerala, faced opposition from within the party, leading the then Left leadership to return the amount to the lottery baron.

From Tamil Nadu, he gradually expanded his business to neighboring states like Kerala, where the sale of lottery is still a thriving business, and Karnataka, before venturing into the northeast, where he is accused of committing fraud, and even neighboring countries like Bhutan and Nepal. He began focusing on states like Kerala after Tamil Nadu and Karnataka banned the sale of lottery tickets in the 2000s.

Future Gaming, which still operates in the 13 states where the sale of lottery tickets is legal, has over the years diversified into real estate, hospitality, satellite television channels, and software.

With friends across the political spectrum, Martin knew where the political wind blew and planned his move accordingly. As the BJP looked to sweep the 2014 polls, Martin’s wife Leema Rose joined the IJK of media baron and educationist Pariventhar aka Pachamuthu and appeared on stage with the then NDA Prime Ministerial candidate Narendra Modi.

In 2015, Martin’s elder son Charles was inducted into the saffron party. Martin's close association with the DMK – he produced a film written by Karunanidhi -- brought him under the direct line of fire of the then Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa in 2011 when her government slapped the stringent Goondas Act against him and put him in jail for eight months.

His son-in-law Aadhav Arjun, who was associated with the DMK for a very long time through his event management firm, recently joined Viduthalai Chiruthaigal Katchi (VCK), a prominent Dalit party in Tamil Nadu. The party wanted a seat from the DMK for Arjun to contest from a general seat, but the request wasn’t met. Arjun was recently raided by the ED.