RAWALPINDI: A major terror bid was foiled Tuesday when a suspected suicide bomber was intercepted by police near Rawalpindi.

Police sources told Dawn that a bus, which was en route to Rawalpindi from Peshawar, was stopped on Main G.T. road.

One of the bus passengers was taken into custody by police on suspicion.

Upon trying to escape, the suspect was fired at by police in response to which he hurled a hand-grenade, injuring one police constable named Shahid.

However, earlier reports said the suspect blew himself up after being intercepted at the Sardar checkpost in Wah Garden.

Interior Minister Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan has summoned a report of the incident.

On Jan 10, at least eight people were killed and 16 others were injured in a powerful blast outside an imambargah in Rawalpindi.

Security in Pakistan's major cities has been beefed up in the wake of the deadly Taliban assault on Peshawar's Army Public School on Dec 16 which left 150 people — including more than 132 schoolchildren dead.

Take a look: Bomb blast at Rawalpindi imambargah kills 8, injures 16