PESHAWAR, July 26: Three under-trial prisoners fainted in the lock-up of the judicial complex on Monday after the place was filled with more prisoners than its capacity amid hot and sultry weather, sources said.

They said the only fan installed in the lock-up had been out of order for quite some time and could not be repaired on Monday. A large number of under-trial prisoners are lodged in the judicial complex at present.

The situation turned worst on Monday as over 100 prisoners were locked there. The non-functioning of the fan coupled with severe heat aggravated the situation. A prisoner told Dawn that about 100 prisoners had been locked there by 1pm amid severe heat.

He said three prisoners fainted due to congestion as it was difficult even to breathe. He said an employee of a nearby hotel poured some water on fainted prisoners after which they regained consciousness. He said that prisoners were also human beings but were being treated like animals.

A policeman on duty said even if the fan was working inmates had to face problems because a large number of prisoners brought from various police stations had been lodged there.

Litigants and other visitors to the judicial complex, situated on Khyber Road, also face difficulties at various places within the complex as ceiling fans are not installed.

Recently, on the orders of Chief Justice Mian Shakirullah Jan fans have been installed in the high court building, but the judicial complex was still without any facility. No fan or water-cooler has been installed in the corridors in front of the courts of the judicial magistrates where prisoners and litigants wait for long hours for their turn.