Eiffel Tower Temporarily Closes After Staff Strike Over Treatment of Female Employees During Hindu Group Visit

The Eiffel Tower was temporarily closed on Monday after workers went on strike to protest the sidelining of female staff during a private visit by a Hindu religious group. The landmark, which has since reopened, shut down after members of Bochasanwasi Akshar Purushottam Swaminarayan Sanstha (BAPS), a global socio-spiritual Hindu denomination, visited the site. Female staff were reportedly asked to give way to male staff for the group's tour, prompting protests from the workers' union, outrage from French politicians, and an apology from the Hindu group.

The Eiffel Tower closed after staff walked out over the removal of women staff during a weekend visit by BAPS. The Societe d'Exploitation de la Tour Eiffel, or SETE, which runs the Paris landmark, acknowledged that the group had requested the Saturday visit be organized in a way that limited "interactions with women", and stated that "these conditions should not have been accepted". The BAPS monks, or sadhus, practice strict celibacy, requiring them to avoid physical contact with women and being alone in their company, while minimizing personal interaction with the opposite sex. Wider community members of BAPS are not bound by these celibacy rules.

According to news reports, the BAPS delegation visiting the Eiffel Tower comprised both monks and community members. Eiffel Tower staff released a statement condemning "professional instructions that led to female employees being sidelined, replaced and made invisible because of their sex" during the visit. The staff union added that some employees were asked to leave their posts, withdraw to other areas, and were replaced by men, while all female employees were instructed not to cross certain areas while the delegation was present. Paris Mayor Emmanuel Gregoire announced that an investigation would be launched as soon as possible, noting that the employees' dissatisfaction was legitimate.

Founded in India in 1907, BAPS began international expansion in the 1960s, focusing on community building, temple construction, disaster relief, medical camps, and educational programs. It operates an extensive network of temples and cultural centers worldwide, including a temple in Paris. On Tuesday, the BAPS Paris account posted a statement on X responding to the controversy, stating that access to the Eiffel Tower was never denied to anyone, while offering sincere apologies to anyone who may have been hurt or inconvenienced.

French leaders expressed widespread outrage over the incident. Aurore Berge, the minister delegate for gender equality and fight against discrimination in France, stated that no religion is superior to the laws of the Republic. Other figures including Yael Braun-Pivet, Francois Hollande, Michel Barnier, Jordan Bardella, and Marine Le Pen also condemned the event, emphasizing that gender equality is a fundamental achievement in France and that women must be respected in public life.

While BAPS insists it is apolitical, researchers have noted its close relationship with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government. The Eiffel Tower closure occurred just a day after Narendra Modi virtually inaugurated the BAPS temple in Paris. BAPS has faced previous controversies, including a 1966 legal battle regarding temple entry laws, a 2013 sexual assault complaint against senior leaders which the organization denied, and a 2021 US federal class-action lawsuit concerning labor practices at its temple in Robbinsville Township, New Jersey.