Vellarada (Thiruvananthapuram): A handicapped man eking out a living by seeking alms hit the jackpot in Kerala. The Andhra native won Rs 65 lakh in the Akshaya lottery run by the Kerala government.
Pennayya (32), a mason in Anantpur district, went to Kerala after his leg was amputated following an accident at his workplace. Unable to support his wife and three children, he took to begging.
He tested his luck by buying 10 lottery tickets from a vendor at Panachamood. He was declared the winner on Wednesday.
After the agent broke the news at the locality, people in the area tracked down Pennayya and ushered him safely to the police station. Though the police took Pennayya with the lucky ticket to the bank, the managers refused to accept it since he did not have an account.
Pennayya spent the night in the police station with the valuable lottery ticket. Sub inspector D Shibu Kumar said he was waiting for the man’s relatives to come from Andhra to hand him over.