Mohmmed Kunhi Mayyala won a whopping 14 crores in a monthly raffle in UAE. (Representational)
An Indian man in the UAE has won a whopping 14 crores in a monthly raffle and has decided to use the money to pay for the kidney transplant of his close relative, according to a media report.
Mohmmed Kunhi Mayyala, 42, who hails from Kerala and works as a salesman at a garment shop in Abu Dhabi for the last 15 years, initially thought it was a scam when he got the call from the Big Ticket Office regarding his mega win on Wednesday, the Khaleej Times reported.
"A few weeks ago I had got a call from scamsters saying I won a jackpot in an Etisalat raffle draw. I thought this call is also fake. Only after checking the website, I could believe them," Mr Mayyala said.
Mr Mayyala said that the first thing he would do with the 7 million dirham prize money is to pay for the kidney transplant of his close relative. He said his relative who was also working in Abu Dhabi till two years ago went back to India due to his medical condition.
"He is like my own brother. Both his kidneys are dysfunctional, and he has been struggling with weekly dialysis for many years now. I cannot express in words how happy I am that I can now bear the expenses for his surgery and other required medical care," the newspaper quoted Mayyala as saying. Father of two, Mr Mayyala also said that with the prize money he can build a house and start his own business.
However, helping the needy is going to be his first preference, Mr Mayyala said, adding that he will also use part of his jackpot to help the Kerala flood victims.
"I had already contributed whatever I could to the Chief Minister's fund for reconstruction of the state. I am planning to do more," he said.
Several Indians living in the UAE have won lottery in the recent times.
Tajo Mathew,30, from Kerala, had hit a jackpot by winning a whopping USD 1.9 million in a monthly raffle in July this year.
Earlier, an Indian driver in Dubai had won dirham 12 million in a raffledraw in Abu Dhabi in April.
In January, another Keralite in the UAE had won a dirham 12 million in the biggest-ever raffle prize money in Abu Dhabi.