WASHINGTON (The Thursday Times) — The United States has sanctioned an Indian couple and what the Treasury calls their “vast criminal network” in Chandigarh, accusing them of providing fake ship registrations that helped Iran’s shadow fleet of oil tankers evade international rules.
The Treasury named Suniel Kumar Sharma and his wife, Jaspreet Preeti Shahid, on Wednesday, along with two other Indian nationals, Ashwani Kumar Dhiman and Ishwinder Singh, and companies connected to Sharma. Most of the firms listed are registered in Chandigarh, including Aryavart Ship Management, Polynesia Maritime and Alexarya Finserv. The list also has one in Kerala and one in Singapore.
“As we have said many times, under Operation Economic Outcast, you are either with us or against us,” Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said. “We know where you are, and we will sanction those who continue supporting the Iranian regime, whether by land, sea, or air.”
Flags from countries that never agreed
The Treasury says the couple have, from their base in Chandigarh, set up false flag registries and ship certification bodies, claiming to act for countries from Guyana to Eswatini and Laos. It says the operation goes back to at least 2014, when they sought to impersonate the flag authority of Dominica, and that their websites offered services on behalf of countries that had not authorised them.
A Singapore company Sharma set up in 2023, Eswatini Maritime, has been publicly disowned by Eswatini’s authorities but still flags ships carrying Iranian oil, the department says. Those vessels include ships working for the Iranian military and its proxies, it says, and falsely flagged ships carry no valid insurance, leaving coastal countries exposed if there is a spill or accident.
The allegations are the Treasury’s and have not been tested in court. There was no immediate public response from those named or from the Indian government in the reports available.
A wider Indian footprint
The action is the latest in which Indian firms and people have been drawn into the US campaign against Iran’s oil trade. In the same notice, the Treasury’s sanctions office updated its entries for people and companies it had already listed, adding a warning of secondary sanctions, which can reach foreigners who deal with them. They include at least 15 India-based companies, among them Darya Shipping in Gurgaon, Flux Maritime in Navi Mumbai, Shreeji Gems in Surat and Global Tankers in Chandigarh.
Under US sanctions, any assets the targets hold in American jurisdiction are frozen and Americans are barred from dealing with them. Foreign firms that do business with them risk being penalised as well. The Treasury also issued a new alert telling the shipping industry to check for false flags.
A Turkish company, Fugo Ground Services, was sanctioned in the same action for serving Iran’s aviation sector. The Treasury says the campaign, launched in August, aims to cut off the money Iran earns from selling oil during its war with the United States and Israel.
