09-09-2026
French authorities have opened an investigation after female employees at Paris’s Eiffel Tower were reportedly removed from their workplaces during a private visit by about 100 people associated with the Bochasanwasi Akshar Purushottam Swaminarayan Sanstha (BAPS), a Hindu religious organization. The incident prompted anger among staff, a strike, and the tower’s closure on Monday.
Diane Davoine, a representative of the Eiffel Tower staff union, said women were asked to leave their posts so that male employees could take their places. She described the treatment as humiliating and said management had repeatedly apologized. Employees subsequently met with management to demand dialogue and assurances that women would never again be treated this way.
The company operating the Eiffel Tower, Société d’Exploitation de la tour Eiffel, said the BAPS delegation had requested limited interactions with women, but acknowledged that such conditions should not have been accepted. BAPS monks, or sadhus, are required to remain celibate and avoid contact with women, although those restrictions do not apply to all BAPS followers.
Paris Mayor Emmanuel Gregoire called the employees’ dissatisfaction legitimate and said an investigation would begin quickly. France’s Prime Minister Gabriel Attal also said no culture or religious belief could dictate women’s place in France.
The article notes BAPS’s close relationship with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his BJP party. It also references a 2021 lawsuit alleging that the group trafficked low-caste Indian workers to build U.S. temples under poor conditions and low pay. The day after the Eiffel Tower visit, Modi appeared by video at the inauguration of a new BAPS temple in Paris. BAPS apologized to anyone hurt or inconvenienced but did not directly address whether it had requested the removal of female staff.
Entities: Eiffel Tower, Paris, France, Bochasanwasi Akshar Purushottam Swaminarayan Sanstha (BAPS), Diane Davoine, Emmanuel Gregoire • Tone: analytical • Sentiment: negative • Intent: inform
09-09-2026
In a France 24 Spotlight segment hosted by François Picard, Anish Gawande examines the controversy surrounding the inauguration of a BAPS Hindu temple near Paris. The immediate dispute involves the alleged treatment of female staff at the Eiffel Tower, but Gawande argues that the issue reveals broader questions about religion, diplomacy, political influence, labor standards, and the role of the Indian diaspora in France.
A central concern is the uncertain status of the inauguration. Gawande questions whether the ceremony was a private religious event or something closer to a state-sanctioned occasion, noting the presence of senior Indian diplomatic representatives and remarks by Prime Minister Narendra Modi referring to India-France relations. He also points to Modi’s longstanding political association with BAPS, suggesting that the organization’s relationship with Indian political power deserves greater scrutiny.
The segment also raises concerns about allegations involving BAPS’s social, labor, and political practices in other countries. Gawande challenges the idea that the temple represents Hinduism in France as a whole, emphasizing the diversity of Hindu traditions and Indian communities in the country. He warns that the controversy could extend beyond BAPS and be used by far-right movements in debates about immigration, religion, and French national identity.
Ultimately, Gawande calls for institutional and political scrutiny of how the temple project was facilitated, how land was allocated, whether labor protections were observed, and where the boundary between religious organizations and state power lies. The segment presents the temple inauguration not as an isolated controversy but as a case study in the intersection of faith, diplomacy, politics, and labor rights.
Entities: Anish Gawande, François Picard, Narendra Modi, BAPS, BAPS temple near Paris • Tone: analytical • Sentiment: negative • Intent: analyze
09-09-2026
The Eiffel Tower reopened on Tuesday after a one-day strike prompted by staff objections to management instructions during a Saturday visit by a Hindu delegation. Diane Davoine of the CGT union said employees were told that female workers should “not be in contact” with the delegation, which was visiting Paris to celebrate the inauguration of a traditional Hindu stone temple. The instructions were described by the union as exceptional and unacceptable, leading workers to close the landmark and protest what they viewed as gender-based restrictions.
The delegation was organized by Bochasanwasi Shri Akshar Purushottam Swaminarayan Sanstha, commonly known as BAPS, a global religious and civic organization within the Swaminarayan branch of Hinduism. BAPS said it had coordinated with Eiffel Tower management to minimize disruption for staff and visitors, but denied that its requests were based on gender. The organization said the situation did not reflect its values and reaffirmed its commitment to equality, mutual respect and service. It also issued an apology to anyone affected.
The company operating the tower did not immediately comment. Paris Mayor Emmanuel Grégoire said he would launch an investigation, emphasizing that gender equality must apply at historic monuments and throughout the city. The 137-year-old Eiffel Tower attracts approximately seven million visitors annually and has previously been closed because of labor disputes, including a six-day strike in February 2024 over maintenance and wages. The incident has raised questions about workplace equality, accommodation of religious delegations and management responsibility at a major public landmark.
Entities: Eiffel Tower, Paris, France, Diane Davoine, CGT union, Bochasanwasi Shri Akshar Purushottam Swaminarayan Sanstha (BAPS) • Tone: analytical • Sentiment: negative • Intent: inform
