The marriage party was underway in a tent near the city of Dera Ghazi Khan on Saturday night when it caught fire. An electrical short-circuit is thought to have caused the blaze.

Several women and children died of burns. Many of those fleeing scaled a nearby wall, causing it to collapse.

"Around 22 to 23 people were killed and 70 people were injured," police officer Ghulam Farid told Reuters. The groom was among the injured.

He said the death toll could rise because several victims were in critical condition.

Dera Ghazi Khan is about 500 km (310 miles) southwest of the capital, Islamabad.