The Martin Charitable Trust, the CSR arm of the Martin Group of Companies, recently donated ₹1 crore to Loyola College, Chennai. The funds are being used for the construction of four modern classrooms in the Loyola Shyam Kothari Centenary Building.
The donation was handed over by Jose Charles Martin, Managing Director of the Martin Group, and his mother, Dr. Leema Rose Martin, Director of the company, to Rev. Fr. Antony Robinson SJ, Rector of Loyola Institutions. The college management publicly expressed gratitude, calling the gesture a demonstration of the group’s commitment to higher education.
Senior Jesuit administrators, including Secretary Rev. Fr. Thomas Alexander SJ, Principal Rev. Fr. A. Louis Arockiaraj SJ, Alumni Director Rev. Fr. A. Louie Albert SJ, and Loyola Alumni Association office-bearers, participated in the event and felicitated the donors.
This was posted on the Loyola Alumni website and Facebook pages.
The news was also shared by Jose Charles Martin, the eldest son of Lotery kingpin Santiago Martin on his X handle.
Investing in education, investing in the future!
As part of its Education CSR commitment, Martin Charitable Trust has proudly contributed ₹1 Crore to Loyola College for the creation of 4 fully equipped modern classrooms in the prestigious Shyam Kothari Centenary Building (100th… pic.twitter.com/p09vPv9rbC— Jose Charles Martin (@sscharles) August 25, 2025
About The Martin Group
Santiago Martin, a Coimbatore-based businessman widely known as the ‘lottery king’, is under intense scrutiny by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) for his alleged involvement in large-scale illegal activities within the lottery industry. According to officials, Martin’s lottery operations generate an staggering annual turnover of approximately ₹15,000 crore.
Case Against Lottery King Santiago Martin
According to the ED, Martin’s lottery operations generate an annual turnover of more than ₹15,000 crore. The investigation, which began in 2014, is based on multiple FIRs. The Central Bureau of Investigation registered the first FIR in 2014, followed by two by the Kolkata Police in 2022, and one by the Meghalaya government in 2024 that alleged losses of ₹1,500 crore from illegal lottery sales.
So far, the agency has attached assets worth over ₹1,000 crore, including properties valued at ₹622 crore by its Kochi zonal unit and ₹409 crore by the Kolkata unit. Recent searches at Martin’s premises led to the recovery of ₹12 crore in cash and fixed deposits worth ₹6.4 crore, along with evidence of unaccounted properties across Coimbatore, Chennai, Mumbai, Dubai, and London.
The ED has alleged that Martin created over 350 companies and special purpose vehicles to acquire properties using proceeds of crime. Prize-winning unsold lottery tickets were reportedly used in land transactions, with relatives and associates named as prize claimants despite the tickets never being sold to the public.
The Madras High Court has allowed the Enforcement Directorate (ED) to resume and continue its PMLA money laundering case against Santiago Martin, his wife, and associates—nullifying a lower court’s closure of the case. The Court reaffirmed that money laundering charges under PMLA are independent offences, and closing the root/predicate case without proper scrutiny is a miscarriage of justice.
Political Funding Trail
The probe has also revealed that Martin’s company, Future Gaming & Hotel Services Pvt. Ltd., was a major donor through electoral bonds. Between 2019 and 2024, it contributed ₹1,368 crore to various political parties. The Trinamool Congress (TMC) reportedly received ₹542 crore, while the DMK received ₹503 crore of its total ₹632 crore from the company. Other recipients included the BJP, YSRCP, and Congress.
Fresh Allegations in Meghalaya
The Director of Meghalaya State Lottery, Mary Sonty Marak, lodged a complaint in 2024 alleging that Martin and his associate Subbayan Nagarajan intimidated distributors and obstructed the official lottery system, causing losses of ₹1,500 crore to the state.
(With inputs from Economic Times)
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