Pakistan has used the line of asymmetric warfare very successfully in the last decade. And the Indian government's reaction has been rather passive. You can blow up Indian embassies, attack the parliament, or blow bombs in major cities. And yet India hardly revolts.
The new Goverment is perhaps not like the old ones. With a growing economy, absolute majority in the Lok Sabha, and hardline approach at least in suggested in the media. So the state terror institutions in Pakistan are testing the waters. The attack on the Indian embassy right before Modi's swearing in was exactly that.
> What do they gain from provoking us?
Pakistan is not a country in the hands of the civilian government like India. It is a country run by intelligence and military institutions. So they have to constantly justify their need. Hence their sole existence revolves around feeding terror and a fear towards India. But finally the terrorism they fostered for so long is starting to consume them, the Peshawar attack on children is the latest example.
Bruce Riedel's material is top notch regarding the history and the challenges.
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