Kaushal Parekh, 17, a student of Vishwa Niketan School in Naranpura took his own life on May 13, fearing that he would fare poorly in his HSC (Commerce) exams. But, as the results showed on Thursday, he secured a first class, scoring 62.82% marks.

Kaushal's father Shailesh Parekh had no reason to feel happy on his son's achievement. In a subdued tone he said: "I would like to appeal to students that no one should ever take such extreme steps because of phobia of failure. Today I have the marksheet of my son with a first class result, but I don't have my son to celebrate it with. He was studying and preparing for the board examination well, and his hard work has earned him 62.82% marks. Every one gets rewarded for their hard work. He wanted to join a fine arts course or event management after his HSC results."