Before I answer the question, it is essential to understand that countries can be 'allies' on specific issues

but that doesn't imply the alliance is uni layered and that they will adopt the same line of interest on all

issues. Geopolitics is always dictated by what's beneficial to a country. Moreover, India does not have a

dog in this fight that would compel it to choose a side.

Some of the reasons India would choose to remain neutral and refuse to toe the West's line of thinking

are as follows:

1. Iran is majority Shia, and thus, has always regarded neighbouring Pakistan (which is majority Sunni) as

a hostile nation. This allowed Indian diplomats to make inroads into the Iranian administration. Good

relations between India and Iran (as well as Afghanistan) allow them to isolate Pakistan across all its

borders diplomatically. Also, in the event of war breaking out in the region (highly unlikely), India can

use its goodwill with the Afghan and Iranian governments to squeeze international supply routes into

Pakistan.

2. Iran is among the world's largest suppliers of oil and natural gas. With emission norms being made

stricter across the world, natural gas, which is cleaner than gasoline, stands to become more important

as a fossil fuel. Moreover, all public transport in larger Indian cities increasingly runs on compressed

natural gas making it an invaluable source of fuel. India and Iran have been in talks for a while about a

gas pipeline connecting both countries transiting Pakistan. All these make Iran an indispensable fuel

supplier for India. Besides, several Indian states are going to elections this month and the parliamentary

elections take place next year. With increasing protests in India over inflation, any government hoping

for re-election will be wary of committing towards any international action that would drive fuel prices

upwards.

3. In 1998, when India tested its own nuclear weapons, the Clinton administration imposed sanctions on

India eventually making it a nuclear-pariah. These sanctions had no effect on the Indian economy but

did make the political administration rather angry. Fast forward 10 years and the Bush administration

went to the extent of modifying US law just to be able to sign a nuclear deal with India. Given this

history, India is wary of any attempts by the West to dictate who should or shouldn't have nukes

especially since these countries possess nukes themselves and have not shown similar enthusiasm

towards getting Israel to shed its nukes.

4. The United States and the EU have imposed sanctions on Iran's nuclear program claiming that its an

unstable state with a rogue administration. However, astonishingly, the same governments of the West

have never imposed any similar pressure on a much-more-unstable and nuclear Pakistan (the US

remains one of Pakistan's largest military aid donors and has routinely sold defence equipment to that

country). The West did not raise an eyebrow when A.Q.Khan, the mastermind of Pakistan's nuclear

program walked scot-free in 2009 despite knowing of his close links with the North Korean

administration.

Given this, it would be rather hard to convince New Delhi to vote in line with Western concerns

especially since the West doesn't quite regard Indian concerns with a similar seriousness.

5. Economic sanctions do nothing to get a rogue administration to change its plans. All they do is push

the country further into poverty and make life miserable for its ordinary citizens (e.g. Cuba, Iraq,

Myanmar etc.). Moreover, sanctions in this case might seem to some as a prelude to a full-scale

invasion. Indian policy in the region has always been skewed towards rebuilding and reconstruction

rather than military-aided regime-change. For instance, India chose not to participate in operation

Enduring Freedom but post-war became one of the largest aid donors and participants in rebuilding

Afghanistan.

Given these primarily economic as well as some ideological concerns, India will be wary of throwing its

weight behind the West in imposing sanctions on Iran. The Indian administration has consistently

advocated dialogue and negotiations in the case of Iran and going by recent news reports, continues to

do so.

Israel is a natural ally of India's as both are countries that have been victims of terrorism. Besides, Israel

is also a vendor of sophisticated military technology to India making it a very important ally. Iran,

similarly, is an important supplier of fuel and also tends to vote in India's favour or side with the country

on numerous international issues. Therefore, both countries are rather important for Indian interests

and given all this, it is prudent for India to stay neutral rather than support either nation.