Chandigarh
Indian city where, Treasury alleges, a network sold false flags to Iran's shadow fleet.
The US Treasury on 4 November 2026 designated a network it alleges ran false flag registries and fake certificates from Chandigarh for tankers in Iran's shadow fleet. It names Suniel Kumar Sharma and his wife, Jaspreet Preeti Shahid.
Last refreshed: 8 November 2026 · Appears in 1 active topic
How did a Chandigarh couple allegedly flag Iranian tankers under countries' names?
Timeline for Chandigarh
Hosted the alleged network
Iran Conflict 2026: US hits alleged Indian false-flag ringBackground
Chandigarh is a city and union territory in north-western India, and the shared capital of the states of Punjab and Haryana. It lies about 260 km north-west of New Delhi.
The city is the base of a network the US Treasury designated on 4 November 2026. Treasury alleges that Suniel Kumar Sharma and his wife, Jaspreet Preeti Shahid, sold false flag registrations and fake certificates from Chandigarh to tankers in Iran's shadow fleet.
Treasury says the couple's operations began as early as 2014. Eight of the ten entities it named in the action are in India, and it named no ships. The action followed US designations in October 2026 of Indian firms in the Iranian trade.
Why did the US sanction people in Chandigarh?
Who runs the false flag network in Chandigarh?
Written with AI from Lowdown's published reporting. Not individually reviewed by an editor. Updated 8 November 2026. Editorial standards.