A defiant student standing atop the steep incline of a MiG-23 UM aircraft displayed outside Lovely Professional University (LPU), against a sky rendered orange by the glow of a campus ablaze, became one of the most viral images to emerge from the recent protests at LPU.Also Read: LPU rampage: 9 arrested, including juvenile who climbed atop MiG-23The image has now led to the arrest of a minor student of LPU, who climbed atop the aircraft during the protests. The student could be seen standing right above the cockpit of the aircraft, known for its characteristic pointed, conical metal nose cone that houses radio-locator and radar systems in single-seat MiG-23M fighter variants.The arrested juvenile is among the nine people arrested by the Punjab Police for vandalism, arson, highway blockades and targeting of police vehicles. He is among the seven LPU students whose names have figured in the arrests so far. Hailing from Mandi in Himachal Pradesh, the student was reportedly arrested from Himachal.His father is reportedly an official at the DC office in Mandi.The decommissioned MiG-23 UM aircraft on display at LPU in Phagwara had been given to the LPU Chancellor by the Indian Air Force (IAF). Chancellor Mittal had said both the 40- to 50-ft-high fighter jet and a tank (associated with the 1971 war) had been displayed in honour of the armed forces and to inspire youth. The student’s act drew sharp criticism from the LPU authorities.In a recent media interview, university Chancellor and Rajya Sabha MP Ashok Mittal said, “Aircraft and tanks of the IAF have been displayed at the LPU main gate. The MiG-23 aircraft was given to me by the Air Force. During the protest, an individual climbed on the 40-ft fighter jet and danced. These aircraft and tanks are memorials of our armed forces. It’s an insult to the military. The university was set on fire but what’s personally most hurtful for me is this episode. I will hope for the biggest action on this.”The Mig-23 aircraftDuring the protest, a student could be seen standing right above the cockpit of the 40- to 50-ft MiG-23 UM aircraft, known for its characteristic pointed, conical metal nose cone that houses radio-locator and radar systems in single-seat MiG-23M fighter variants.The MiG-23, the Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-23, is a single-engined, supersonic, variable-sweep wing fighter aircraft designed by the Mikoyan-Gurevich design bureau in the Soviet Union. It is a third-generation jet fighter, alongside similar Soviet aircraft such as the Su-17 ‘Fitter’. It was among the first Soviet fighters to be armed with beyond-visual-range missiles. The Indian Air Force (IAF) introduced the Soviet-built Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-23 in the early 1980s (around 1980-81) as its first variable-sweep wing fighter.The IAF operated variants including the MiG-23MF (interceptor) and MiG-23BN (ground-attack). They saw action during the 1984 Siachen Glacier campaign and the 1999 Kargil War. India retired its final operational MiG-23 interceptors and strike variants in the late 2000s — the MF variants were phased out around 2006-07 and the last MiG-23BNs retired in March 2009.