Eiffel Tower Shut as Protest Erupts Over BAPS Visit and Women Staff Removal

The Eiffel Tower was closed to visitors on Monday, September 7, 2026, after a protest against the monument's management for replacing all women staff with male colleagues ahead of a visit by a 100-strong delegation from the Bochasanwasi Akshar Purushottam Swaminarayan Sanstha (BAPS), a Hindu religious sect known for strict gender segregation.

A local trade union condemned what it described as workplace instructions that led to female employees being sidelined, replaced and rendered invisible on the basis of gender. A union spokeswoman said the experience was humiliating for the women involved, particularly at a national symbol such as the Eiffel Tower.

The move triggered a swift backlash in France. Ariel Weil, president of the company that operates the Eiffel Tower, called the incident totally shocking and unacceptable and announced an internal investigation to establish accountability and ensure it never happens again. French politicians also condemned the episode, with far-right leader Marine Le Pen stating that France would never accept limits on the presence of women.

The controversy also unsettled sections of the Indian diaspora, wary of an anti-immigrant backlash. The India Alliance Paris said in a social media post that the episode must not become fodder for racism, describing BAPS as a regressive sect politically connected to India's far-right and arguing that it does not represent all Hindus or India.

BAPS said in a statement on X that the visit had been arranged in conjunction with the Eiffel Tower team and apologised for any pain or inconvenience caused.

The delegation's visit coincided with the inauguration of a large Swaminarayan temple in Bussy-Saint-Georges, a Paris suburb. India's Ambassador to France attended the event, and Prime Minister Narendra Modi virtually inaugurated the temple, describing it in a video address as a new milestone in cultural relations between India and France.

BAPS, named after Bochasan village in Gujarat, was formed in 1905 as a distinct denomination within the Swaminarayan Sampradaya. Its followers are predominantly from Gujarat. Mr. Modi attended the funeral of Pramukh Swami Maharaj, the sect's spiritual head, in August 2016, and other prominent Gujaratis, including Home Minister Amit Shah and Adani Group Chairman Gautam Adani, have appeared at BAPS functions.

The group says it has over 1,300 temples worldwide and a presence in more than 50 countries. It has also faced controversy: in 2021, a lawsuit in a New Jersey federal court accused it of exploiting Indian workers brought to the United States on religious-worker visas and making them perform heavy construction work. The litigants alleged intentional recruitment from Scheduled Caste communities and forced labour, document servitude and confiscation of immigration documents. BAPS contested the claims. A criminal investigation opened in May 2021 was closed in mid-2025 without explanation, while civil cases remain open.

The wider Swaminarayan tradition has a documented history of resisting Dalit temple entry. When the Bombay Harijan Temple Entry Act, 1947 granted Dalits access to Hindu temples, representatives of the Sampradaya litigated to the Supreme Court, arguing that the tradition was a religion distinct from Hinduism and outside the legislation. The court ruled against them.

Critics have questioned the propriety of the Prime Minister of a constitutionally secular republic publicly platforming a particular religious sect and projecting it as part of India's diplomatic outreach and special partnership with another country.