Daijiworld Media Network - Paris
Paris, Sep 8: The Eiffel Tower was temporarily closed on Monday after employees staged a protest over allegations that female staff were asked to step aside during a private visit by a Hindu religious delegation linked to the Bochasanwasi Akshar Purushottam Swaminarayan Sanstha (BAPS).
The incident occurred on Saturday when around 100 members of the delegation visited the iconic Paris landmark during celebrations surrounding the inauguration of a major Hindu temple in the Paris suburbs.
According to union representatives, female employees were allegedly asked to leave their workstations as members of the delegation passed through, with male employees taking their places.
"As the delegation passed through, women were asked to leave their workstations so that men could take their places," union representative Diane Davoine told Reuters.
Davoine said tensions among employees increased over the weekend, prompting staff to hold a meeting on Monday to seek dialogue with management and ensure that women would not be treated similarly again.
The Eiffel Tower's opening was delayed while employees attended the meeting, with signs at the monument stating that the opening had been delayed for operational reasons. Davoine said management had apologised to employees over the incident.
The tower's operator, SETE, acknowledged that the delegation had requested arrangements intended to limit interactions with women and admitted that such conditions should not have been accepted. SETE President Ariel Weil said the company would investigate the incident and draw the necessary conclusions.
The CGT trade union condemned what it described as workplace instructions that resulted in female employees being sidelined, replaced and rendered invisible because of their gender.
BAPS, meanwhile, said the visit had been coordinated with Eiffel Tower authorities to minimise disruption and maintain normal access for visitors. In a statement posted on X, the organisation said the large delegation had scheduled the visit in consultation with Eiffel Tower management at the beginning of regular opening hours to reduce inconvenience to the public.
BAPS said it was not aware of any instance in which visitors were denied entry to the monument during the visit, while expressing regret over the controversy and apologising to anyone who may have felt hurt or inconvenienced.
The organisation said it remained committed to mutual respect and service to others and took the concerns raised over the incident seriously.
Paris Mayor Emmanuel Grégoire ordered an investigation into the allegations, saying the concerns raised by workers were justified and required urgent attention.
"It is unacceptable that such conditions could be tolerated," Grégoire said in a post on X, adding that such circumstances did not reflect his values or those the Eiffel Tower should represent.
He stressed that everyone must be able to work and move freely without discrimination based on gender, and said equality between women and men must be upheld throughout Paris, including at its most iconic landmarks.
Grégoire said the circumstances that led to the employee mobilisation must be fully clarified and pledged that an investigation would be launched quickly.
The controversy also drew criticism from Yaël Braun-Pivet, president of France's National Assembly, who said she would not accept women being asked to step aside to accommodate 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," Braun-Pivet said.
The controversy comes shortly after BAPS inaugurated its first major Hindu temple in France near Paris on Sunday, with Prime Minister Narendra Modi attending the ceremony.
Addressing the gathering, Modi said the temple would bring India's ancient ideas and human values to France while further strengthening the cultural ties between the two countries.