Punjab woman wins $1 million Dubai lottery with husband's wedding anniversary gift

Payal mentioned that she has been buying DDF tickets for the past 12 years. (Representative Image)

A woman from Punjab received an anniversary gift from her husband that turned her into a millionaire. How? Well, Payal bought a lottery ticket with the money that her husband gave her as a gift on their 16th wedding anniversary. And lo and behold, she ended up winning a $1 million prize at the Dubai Duty-Free Millenium Draw.

According to report in Khaleej Times, Payal bought the winning ticket online on May 3 with the money she received as a gift. She said that she chose number 3337 because it had the most number of 3s in it.

“The money I used to buy the winning ticket came from my husband (Harnek Singh), who gifted me Dh1,000 on our 16th wedding anniversary on April 20. I thought of buying a DDF ticket online with the money, and I picked the ticket with most number 3s in it,” she told the news outlet.

She also mentioned that she has been buying DDF tickets for the past 12 years. She used to buy them everytime they travelled, alternating the names on the tickets with her husband’s and children’s names.

“I used to buy DDF lottery tickets once or twice a year at the airport, but last time I made an exception by buying a ticket online for the first time. This cash gift from my husband has made us millionaires,” she added.

Meanwhile, the couple lives in Punjab with their 14-year-old twin boys. She said that she couldn’t believe the news when the DDF organisers called her. “I called my husband and told him of the jackpot. I was so happy and tears of joy rolled out as I spoke to him. The kids (twins aged 14) don't know the news yet, but we will tell them once we pick them up from school this (Thursday) afternoon,” she quoted further.

Upon being asked what she will do with the huge amount of money, Payal said, “It's still very early to make a decision. But of course, our priority is to secure the future of our children – to give them a really good education for a great life. I would also like to help my brother who lives in Australia and do charity work in our Punjabi community. Thank you, Dubai Duty-Free, for fulfilling my dream.”

Payal became the 229th person from India to win the Millennium Millionaire promotion.