Eiffel Tower women staff ‘sidelined’: BAPS apologises, MEA steers clear

Union representative Diane Davoine said, “Women were asked to leave their workstations so that men could take their places.”

“That absolutely does not go down well with the employees, with women obviously — who are all humiliated by what happened, by the way some were treated,” Davoine told Reuters.

“Tensions mounted over the weekend, so this morning the employees decided to meet: First, to open a dialogue with management, and second, to ensure that women are never treated this way at the company again,” she said.

Davoine added that management had since apologised to workers over the incident.

The Eiffel Tower, which receives nearly seven million visitors a year, as per its website, was closed on Monday, France 24 reported.

In New Delhi on Tuesday, Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said, “We are aware of the opening of a temple by the BAPS Sanstha in the Paris area. As to the particular issue pertaining to the Tower, this is a matter purely between the entities concerned.”

When asked about Prime Minister Narendra Modi addressing the inauguration of BAPS Swaminarayan Hindu Mandir in Paris on Sunday, he said, “It is a common practice for the Prime Minister to convey his good wishes on such occasions. In this case, it was done virtually. There is no cause for any comment in this regard.”

Meanwhile, BAPS said in a statement that the visit to the Eiffel Tower was arranged at the start of opening hours to avoid disrupting others, given the size of its delegation.

“We respect the concerns raised and take them very seriously. Due to the size of our delegation, the visit was arranged in conjunction with the Eiffel Tower team at the start of normal opening hours to avoid disrupting or inconveniencing others,” the group said.

“To the best of our knowledge, at no point was anyone prevented access to the Eiffel Tower. Nevertheless, we sincerely apologise for any pain or inconvenience caused. We believe in the universal values of mutual respect and service,” it added.

Société d’Exploitation de la tour Eiffel (SETE), the company that runs the Eiffel Tower, said the delegation had requested the visit be organised in such a way as to limit “interactions with women” and acknowledged that “these conditions should not have been accepted”.

The conditions “were not in line with SETE’s values, nor with the principles of equality between men and women,” the company said, promising to accept the “consequences.”

“We are going to shed light on what happened, and we will draw the necessary conclusions,” SETE president Ariel Weil, who is also an elected official in Paris, told AFP.

Paris Mayor Emmanuel Grégoire expressed support for the strike in a post on X, describing the exclusion of women workers as “unacceptable” and contrary to the “values that the Eiffel Tower stands for”.

“I have taken note of the anger expressed by Eiffel Tower staff, and I want to tell them that their grievances are legitimate. Such conditions are unacceptable. These are neither my values nor the values the Eiffel Tower should embody — a place where everyone must be able to move about and act freely, without distinction between women and men,” Grégoire said. “It is urgent that the full facts surrounding this protest be brought to light. Gender equality does not stop at the foot of our historic monuments, nor anywhere else in this city. It must apply everywhere, for everyone. I will ensure this happens, everywhere and without exception. An investigation will be launched immediately.”

French Equality Minister Aurore Bergé also posted on X, saying, “In France, we do not ask women to erase themselves… no dogma, no religion is above the laws of the Republic.”

Far-Right French leader Marine Le Pen, an early frontrunner in next year’s presidential election, also weighed in, saying France would “never accept that women’s presence be ‘limited’.”