30-04-2025
Dubai Duty Free draw: Indian expat in UAE wins $1m; Pakistani winner unaware of jackpot
Dubai: An Indian expat and a Pakistani expat are the latest winners of the Dubai Duty Free (DDF) Millennium Millionaire draw, each taking home a prize of $1 million. However, while the Indian winner is celebrating, the Pakistani winner remains unaware of his windfall.
Biju Therool, a 49-year-old Indian expat in Dubai and father of two, won the prize in Series 499 of the draw. He purchased the winning ticket (0437) on April 19 at Terminal 2 of Dubai International Airport, just before flying home to his hometown in the south Indian state of Kerala for a vacation.
A long-time Dubai resident, Therool has been living in the UAE for 20 years and works for a retail chain. He has been participating in the DDF promotion for the past five years.
'Thank you very much Dubai Duty Free. I'm so happy with this win!' he said after being informed of the life-changing news.
Therool becomes the 248th Indian national to win US$1 million in the Millennium Millionaire promotion since its inception in 1999. Indian nationals remain the largest group of ticket buyers in the draw's history, according to DDF.
'Uncontactable' winners
Meanwhile, Muhammad Gumman, a Pakistani national based in Saudi Arabia, was announced as the winner of Series 498, having purchased his ticket (number 2990) online on April 12. He is the 26th Pakistani to win the DDF jackpot since 1999.
However, organisers say Gumman has yet to be reached and is currently uncontactable, though he is 'no doubt set to be delighted' when he learns of his unexpected fortune.
The draw was held on Wednesday at Concourse D of Dubai International Airport.
Interestingly, two other winners—who bagged a luxury car and a motorbike respectively in the Finest Surprise draw held after the million-dollar announcements—were also uncontactable.
In the case of a Dutch national, the win was a remarkable stroke of luck—his second with Dubai Duty Free.
Albert Walraven, a Dutch national based in the UAE, won a Range Rover SE P360 (Batumi Gold) with ticket number 1171 in Series 1919. He had purchased the ticket online in April.
Walraven, who is currently uncontactable, had previously won a Porsche 911 Carrera Coupe in Series 1470 back in January 2012, according to the organisers.
Similarly, Soma Nagaraj, an Indian national residing in the UAE, won an Indian 101 Scout (Sunset Red Metallic) motorbike, but could also not be reached for immediate comment, according to DDF officials.
He won the bike in Series 621 with ticket number 0409, purchased online on 8 April.
Another Pak winner from Saudi
Meanwhile, another Pakistani national based in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, won a Land Rover Defender 110 V8 525 Edition (Santorini Black) in Series 1921.
Saadullah Malik, 39, purchased his winning ticket (1066) in Concourse D on 18 April, while returning to Riyadh.
