Washington’s latest Iran sanctions target four India-based companies and three Indian nationals, raising concerns over trade, payments and the future of New Delhi’s economic engagement with Tehran.
The United States has expanded its economic sanctions campaign against Iran to include four India-based companies and three Indian nationals, increasing pressure on New Delhi’s businesses and adding another strain to an already difficult US-India relationship, according to a report by The Times of India.
The US State Department has sanctioned India-based customs broker Portease Partners LLP, accusing it of facilitating multiple shipments of Iranian petrochemical products to India. Two Indian nationals associated with the company, Indrismiya Ashrafmiya Sheikh and Harish Ramachandra Rangi, were also designated, the report said.
Three other Indian companies — Sadashiva Overseas Limited, PP Softtech Private Limited and Prakrutees Infra Impex India Private Limited — were also targeted. According to the US, Sadashiva Overseas imported around $69 million worth of Iranian-origin petroleum products between February 2024 and June 2025, while PP Softtech imported about $25 million between January 2024 and June 2025. Prakrutees Infra Impex was accused of importing Iranian petroleum products worth roughly $25 million between May 2023 and February 2026. PP Softtech director Prashant Garg was also sanctioned.
The latest action forms part of what US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent has called “Operation Economic Outcast”, a broader effort aimed at cutting Iran off from revenue generated through oil and petrochemicals, shipping, banking, technology, gold, aviation and digital assets. Nearly 60 entities, individuals and vessels were included in the latest round of sanctions, the report said.
India faces a wider sanctions challenge
While India has reduced its economic exposure to Iran over the years, the relationship remains strategically important. In particular, New Delhi’s involvement in Chabahar port provides an important trade and connectivity route to Afghanistan that bypasses Pakistan.
More from BusinessIndian exports such as rice, tea and pharmaceuticals could also face difficulties if US sanctions further complicate payments, shipping and financial transactions linked to Iran, according to the Times of India report.
The sanctions also come as US-India ties are dealing with disputes over tariffs, Russia and Washington’s increasingly transactional approach towards New Delhi. Rajghatta cited veteran Asia policymaker Evan Feigenbaum as warning that the use of secondary sanctions could further damage bilateral relations.
The pressure on India has also raised questions about how consistently Washington is applying its Iran sanctions policy. China remains Iran’s biggest oil customer, yet the US has so far stopped short of imposing sweeping country-level measures against Beijing that could trigger a much broader confrontation, the report noted.
Why the sanctions matter for India
The immediate financial value of the transactions cited in the US sanctions may be relatively small compared with the scale of global energy trade. But the broader significance lies in Washington’s willingness to target companies outside Iran that help sustain Iranian trade.
The US message, as described in the report, is that businesses, intermediaries, shipping companies and financial institutions dealing with Iran could themselves face sanctions — even when they are not Iranian entities.
For India, that creates a difficult balancing act. New Delhi must protect its access to Iranian energy and strategic infrastructure while limiting the risk that Indian companies, banks or traders become exposed to US secondary sanctions.
Iran has rejected Washington’s campaign, while China has criticised unilateral US sanctions and called for diplomacy. Tehran has also warned countries cooperating with Washington that they could face retaliation, according to the report.
The latest US action therefore puts India-Iran trade, Chabahar port, Iranian oil imports and US-India relations under renewed scrutiny as Washington intensifies its campaign to isolate Tehran economically.
