It was almost impossible for Ridad Farhan to sit for the Junior School Certificate (JSC) exams because his father, Faisal Arefin Dipan, was brutally hacked to death just the day before it started.

Shocked as he was by the abrupt loss of a father who was more like a friend to him, he went to the exam hall under police protection and took the test in a state of his mind which was never more disturbed.

Yesterday, when the results were out, Ridad was really happy as he passed the exam with GPA 4.8.

"This is a brilliant result given the situation in which he sat for the exam," said Prof Abul Quasem Fazlul Huq, grandfather of Ridad, a student of Udayan Higher Secondary School in the city.

"We are very happy. So is Ridad," Huq said, adding that unlike most other kids who like to spend time in front of computers, Ridad has a habit of reading all sorts of books.

"Ridad wants to be a writer, a great one, like Rabindranath Tagore, Bankim Chandra Chattopadhyay and Sarat Chandra Chattopadhyay," said Huq, a former Bangla department professor at Dhaka University.

Dipan was survived by his wife Razia, son Ridad and daughter Ridma Adnim, a class-VII student of Udayan School.

Ridad told The Daily Star that he wants to protect and expand Jagriti Prokashoni, which published books of secular writer-blogger Avijit Roy.

Unknown assailants hacked Dipan, owner of Jagriti Prokashoni, to death at his office at Aziz Cooperative Super Market in the capital's Shahbagh on October 31.

The same day, criminals attacked Shuddhoswar's Ahmedur Rashid Tutul and bloggers Ranadipam Basu and Tareque Rahim with machetes at the Lalmatia office of the publishing house.

Tutul was critically injured. Tareque was also shot in the chest.

Ansar Al Islam (AQIS Bangladesh) had reportedly claimed responsibility for the twin incidents through email to different media outlets.