<p>Chennai: AIADMK’s Lalgudi candidate Leema Rose, wife of lottery baron Santiago Martin, is the richest candidate in Tamil Nadu with declared assets worth a whopping Rs 1,041 crore. </p><p>What is further revealing in the affidavit filed by Rose is that her husband’s worth is a colossal Rs 4,149 crore. </p>.Lottery 'baron' Santiago Martin's family chooses three political parties to make electoral debut.<p>The total declared assets of the family – Martin, Rose, and their son Jose Charles Martin – is Rs 5,862 crore. </p><p>Santiago Martin remains the single largest purchaser of electoral bonds worth Rs 1,368 crore, which he donated to several political parties with DMK and TMC being the biggest beneficiaries at Rs 503 crore and Rs 542 crores respectively between 2017 to 2024. </p><p>Tiger Associates, linked to Martin, donated Rs 60 crore to AIADMK, and Rs 50 crore to DMK during the 2024-2025 fiscal. </p><p>Rose is among the three immediate family members of Martin, who runs a business empire encompassing lottery, real estate, hospitality, satellite television channel, and software, who are contesting the Assembly elections in Tamil Nadu and Puducherry. The couple’s son Jose Martin is contesting from Kamaraj Nagar in Puducherry, and their son-in-law Aadhav Arjuna is the TVK candidate from Villivakkam in Chennai. </p><p>Rose has declared assets worth Rs 1,049 crore in total with movable assets worth Rs 139.62 crore, and immovable assets worth Rs 909.94 crore. She has sworn in her affidavit that her husband Martin’s total worth is Rs 4,149 crore – movable assets (Rs 3,262 crore), and immovable assets (Rs 887.36 crore). </p><p>The AIADMK candidate has also declared that her son, Jose Martin, owns assets worth Rs 664.77 crore – movable assets (Rs 225 crore) and immovable assets (Rs 439 crore). She has also disclosed four pending criminal cases -- two under the PMLA and FEMA. </p><p>Rose’s spouse, Santiago Martin, has declared movable assets of about Rs 3,262.01 crore and immovable assets worth Rs 887.36 crore. After accounting for liabilities exceeding Rs 325 crore, his net worth stands at Rs 3,824 crore, with an annual income of Rs 11.39 crore for 2024–25.</p><p>Some of the immovable assets owned by Martin include agricultural and non-agricultural land across Tamil Nadu, commercial buildings in Tiruppur, and Coimbatore, and residential buildings in Chennai. </p><p>Rose has deposits worth Rs 216 crore across various banks, owns three luxury vehicles such as Mercedes Benz, Range Rover, and BMW, and 150 grams of gold. </p><p>Arjuna has declared assets worth Rs 197 crore and his wife, Daisy Arjun, Rs 162.14 crore.</p><p>Martin, an OBC Christian, befriended influential people in almost every political party that mattered in the states where his firms operate. 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). </p><p>Martin also produced a movie for which the late DMK patriarch M Karunanidhi wrote the script. His donation of Rs 2 crore to <em>Deshabimani</em>, the CPI(M) mouthpiece in Kerala, met with opposition from within the party, forcing the then Left leadership to return the amount to the lottery baron. </p><p>Future Gaming still operates in 13 states where the sale of lottery tickets is legal.</p>
<p>Chennai: AIADMK’s Lalgudi candidate Leema Rose, wife of lottery baron Santiago Martin, is the richest candidate in Tamil Nadu with declared assets worth a whopping Rs 1,041 crore. </p><p>What is further revealing in the affidavit filed by Rose is that her husband’s worth is a colossal Rs 4,149 crore. </p>.Lottery 'baron' Santiago Martin's family chooses three political parties to make electoral debut.<p>The total declared assets of the family – Martin, Rose, and their son Jose Charles Martin – is Rs 5,862 crore. </p><p>Santiago Martin remains the single largest purchaser of electoral bonds worth Rs 1,368 crore, which he donated to several political parties with DMK and TMC being the biggest beneficiaries at Rs 503 crore and Rs 542 crores respectively between 2017 to 2024. </p><p>Tiger Associates, linked to Martin, donated Rs 60 crore to AIADMK, and Rs 50 crore to DMK during the 2024-2025 fiscal. </p><p>Rose is among the three immediate family members of Martin, who runs a business empire encompassing lottery, real estate, hospitality, satellite television channel, and software, who are contesting the Assembly elections in Tamil Nadu and Puducherry. The couple’s son Jose Martin is contesting from Kamaraj Nagar in Puducherry, and their son-in-law Aadhav Arjuna is the TVK candidate from Villivakkam in Chennai. </p><p>Rose has declared assets worth Rs 1,049 crore in total with movable assets worth Rs 139.62 crore, and immovable assets worth Rs 909.94 crore. She has sworn in her affidavit that her husband Martin’s total worth is Rs 4,149 crore – movable assets (Rs 3,262 crore), and immovable assets (Rs 887.36 crore). </p><p>The AIADMK candidate has also declared that her son, Jose Martin, owns assets worth Rs 664.77 crore – movable assets (Rs 225 crore) and immovable assets (Rs 439 crore). She has also disclosed four pending criminal cases -- two under the PMLA and FEMA. </p><p>Rose’s spouse, Santiago Martin, has declared movable assets of about Rs 3,262.01 crore and immovable assets worth Rs 887.36 crore. After accounting for liabilities exceeding Rs 325 crore, his net worth stands at Rs 3,824 crore, with an annual income of Rs 11.39 crore for 2024–25.</p><p>Some of the immovable assets owned by Martin include agricultural and non-agricultural land across Tamil Nadu, commercial buildings in Tiruppur, and Coimbatore, and residential buildings in Chennai. </p><p>Rose has deposits worth Rs 216 crore across various banks, owns three luxury vehicles such as Mercedes Benz, Range Rover, and BMW, and 150 grams of gold. </p><p>Arjuna has declared assets worth Rs 197 crore and his wife, Daisy Arjun, Rs 162.14 crore.</p><p>Martin, an OBC Christian, befriended influential people in almost every political party that mattered in the states where his firms operate. 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). </p><p>Martin also produced a movie for which the late DMK patriarch M Karunanidhi wrote the script. His donation of Rs 2 crore to <em>Deshabimani</em>, the CPI(M) mouthpiece in Kerala, met with opposition from within the party, forcing the then Left leadership to return the amount to the lottery baron. </p><p>Future Gaming still operates in 13 states where the sale of lottery tickets is legal.</p>