BAPS says it never sought exclusion of women during Eiffel Tower visit

BAPS Paris said an investigation found it never sought women employees' exclusion during its Eiffel Tower visit. The clarification follows a staff strike, an operational probe and the exit of the tower operator's chief.

In Short

• Eiffel Tower staff staged a strike after allegations over women employees
• The monument shut for a day during the delegation's September visit
• An independent probe found operational failures in handling the large group

A Hindu religious group has said investigations found that it did not ask for female employees to be “hidden, removed or excluded” during its delegation’s visit to the Eiffel Tower in Paris. The issue had sparked a strike by Eiffel Tower staff last month over allegations that women employees were moved away during the visit by around 100 people associated with BAPS (Bochasanwasi Akshar Purushottam) Swaminarayan Sanstha, leading to a day-long closure of the monument.

The statement by BAPS Paris came days after Societe d’Exploitation de la tour Eiffel, the company that runs the Eiffel Tower, announced that its head Patrick Branco Ruivo will step down at the end of the year. The decision followed an investigation by an independent firm, which found a series of operational failures linked to the BAPS delegation’s visit on September 5.

In a statement on Thursday, BAPS Paris said, “From the outset, BAPS has consistently stated that it never asked for female employees to be hidden, removed or excluded.” It added, “The investigation establishes this fact that BAPS made no such request for women to be excluded along the visitor route.” The group also reiterated its concern for employees affected by the events surrounding the visit and said it hoped the clarification would help provide a “better understanding” of the circumstances and “allow everyone involved to move forward respectfully.”

Eiffel Tower employees, represented by the CGT trade union, had alleged that there were “workplace instructions that led to female employees being sidelined, replaced and rendered invisible on the basis of their gender” during the delegation’s visit. The BAPS Hindu temple in Paris had earlier apologised to anyone hurt or inconvenienced by the situation, but said, “to our knowledge, at no time was access to the Eiffel Tower denied to anyone.”

The BAPS delegation was in France for the inauguration of the Hindu temple near Paris, which was consecrated in September. According to its website, BAPS Swaminarayan Sanstha is a “socio-spiritual Hindu faith” with more than 1,300 temples across North America, Europe, Africa, West Asia, India and the Asia-Pacific region. The latest statement from BAPS Paris maintained that the group had made no request to exclude women during the Eiffel Tower visit, an episode that also led to scrutiny of how the visit was handled.

With PTI Inputs

- Ends