This article examines how India understands and negotiates norms for the provision of humanitarian assistance and R2P in political emergencies. Looking at these two related but distinct spheres of action together helps illuminate India’s understanding of international order, and the nature and scope of domestic and international responsibility in protecting populations from harm and deprivation. The article argues that while R2P and humanitarian assistance have both pluralist and solidarist underpinnings, India attempts to contain the meaning and practice of these spheres of action in a manner that is consistent with a pluralist view of international order.