The death toll from a suicide attack on a Pakistani opposition politician's home has risen to 17, police said on Tuesday, a day after the bomber struck in the town of Bhakkar, in the central province of Punjab.

Investigators said they found the head of the bomber, and from its appearance he appeared to come from the nearby tribal lands.

"He was around 30 years-old and looks as if he was ethnic Pashtun from a tribal area. Probably he had links with militants there," Punjab police chief Shaukat Javed said.

Police have begun pursuing DNA tests to identify the suicide bomber.

The latest attack targeted a parliamentarian from the party of former prime minister Nawaz Sharif.

Rashid Akbar Khan Nawani, a member of Pakistan's Shi'ite Muslim minority had spoken out in parliament against a surge in sectarian violence several times recently.

Nawani, who had been meeting constituents in the courtyard of his home, was among 22 wounded in the attack, although he was only slightly hurt.

Police said it was possible that a "Sunni Muslim extremist group" could be responsible for the attack.

Agencies