Puducherry election 2026: Want to know the declared assets of Santiago Martin’s son Jose Charles Martin? | Puducherry News

PUDUCHERRY: Jose Charles Martin, Latchiya Jananayaga Katchi (LJK) founder and son of controversial lottery magnate Santiago Martin, who filed his nomination papers to contest the 2026 assembly polls under the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) fold in Kamaraj Nagar in Puducherry, has revealed that his total assets are worth more than Rs 600 crore. He made the declaration in the affidavit he filed before the returning officer on Monday to contest the polls. He said he and his wife, Sindhu Shree Charles, have movable assets worth Rs 340 crore and immovable assets worth Rs 270 crore.Charles Martin said he has diamond jewels worth Rs 45 crore, luxury watches worth Rs 38 crore, 17.5kg gold jewellery worth Rs 26 crore, 135kg silver jewellery and articles worth Rs 3.8 crore, while his wife has 3.6kg gold jewellery worth Rs 5.35 crore, diamond jewellery worth Rs 2.1 crore, 60kg silver articles and jewellery worth Rs 1.68 crore and luxury watches worth Rs 1.14 crore. Martin earned an income of Rs 59.37 crore in the last financial year. He has deposited over Rs 200 crore in various banks and invested Rs 14.28 crore in shares.Martin also declared that he has a debt of Rs 210 crore, including national and international credit cards’ dues exceeding Rs 1 crore. He has several serious legal complications currently pending in various courts. The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has booked a case accusing him of money laundering and using ‘proceeds of crime’ to purchase assets. The case involves allegations of signing balance sheets that misrepresented illegal funds as unsecured loans.A case related to financial irregularities is pending before the National Investigation Agency (NIA) court, Ernakulam, Kerala. Three criminal cases related to lottery ticket sales and financial crimes are pending in West Bengal, as per the information he furnished in his affidavit.