Eiffel Tower shut after walkout over women staff sidelined during BAPS visit

Eiffel Tower staff walked out after women employees were shifted aside during a BAPS visit. The row sparked political condemnation over gender equality and visitor accommodations.Stock photo used for illustrationThe Eiffel Tower was closed on Monday after staff staged a walkout over the treatment of female employees during a visit by a Hindu religious group, according to authorities and media reports. The protest followed an incident on Saturday when around 100 people linked to BAPS, or Bochasanwasi Akshar Purushottam Swaminarayan Sanstha, visited the monument.Employees said female workers were moved away from their workstations as the delegation passed by. The company that runs the Eiffel Tower later acknowledged that the group had asked for the visit to be organised in a way that limited interactions with women, and said such conditions should not have been accepted.Diane Davoine, a union representative, told French television that female workers had been "moved away from their workstations as the delegation passed by" during the visit. In a statement, Eiffel Tower employees condemned what they called "professional instructions that led to female employees being sidelined, replaced and made invisible because of their sex," Euronews reported.SETE, the company that operates the tower, said the Hindu delegation had requested that the trip be organised so as to limit "interactions with women". It added that "these conditions should not have been accepted". Meanwhile, the BAPS Hindu temple in Paris apologised for "any pain or inconvenience caused". In a statement posted on X, it said, "We understand the concerns expressed and take them very seriously. Given the size of our delegation, the visit was organised in coordination with the Eiffel Tower teams, at the start of normal opening hours, to limit as much as possible any disruption for other visitors." It added, "To our knowledge, at no time was access to the Eiffel Tower denied to anyone. Nevertheless, we wish to offer our sincere apologies to anyone who may have been hurt or inconvenienced by this situation." The statement also said, "We are deeply committed to the universal values of mutual respect and service to others. We respect the concerns raised and take them very seriously."The incident drew criticism from senior French politicians. In a post on X, Paris Mayor Emmanuel Grgoire said he was "aware of the outcry among the employees of the Eiffel Tower" and that it was "unacceptable" that such conditions were agreed to. "These are not my values, nor are they the values that the Eiffel Tower should uphold, where everyone must be able to move about and act freely, without distinction between women and men," he wrote, adding that an investigation would be launched. Yael Braun-Pivet, president of the National Assembly, also condemned the episode, saying, "I refuse to accept that women should be told to step aside to meet the demands of foreign visitors. Welcoming others never means giving up our values. In France, women are fully present in public life. No one tells them to become invisible there." The walkout shut the Eiffel Tower on Monday as staff protested against what they said had happened during the BAPS visit, while the monument's operator admitted the arrangement should not have been accepted and the visiting group issued an apology.With PTI Inputs- EndsPublished By: India Today Web Desk Published On: Sep 8, 2026 10:00 IST