Eiffel Tower staff row was 'miscommunication': BAPS monk

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BAPS monk Brahmavihari Swami has described the controversy surrounding the alleged sidelining of women employees during a Hindu organisation’s visit to the Eiffel Tower in Paris on September 5 as a “miscommunication”, saying he does not blame the monument’s management for the incident. 

Speaking at the NDTV World Summit, Brahmavihari Swami said an investigation into the episode found no explicit request from the BAPS delegation to exclude women employees from the entire procession.

“It was a miscommunication on the part of the Eiffel Tower. I do not blame them as well,” he told NDTV in a session titled Beyond Intelligence: AI, Faith and the Meaning of Being Human.

The controversy erupted after female employees were reportedly removed from their duties or kept out of sight during the private visit by the BAPS delegation on September 5. The incident triggered a staff walkout, led to the Eiffel Tower being closed for a day and sparked widespread criticism in France, where secularism and gender equality are central public values.

An investigation by the General Inspectorate of the City of Paris reportedly found no written evidence that the Hindu delegation had explicitly requested the exclusion of women from the entire procession. According to French newspaper Le Parisien, the inquiry identified communication failures and what it described as a “collective dysfunction”.

Addressing the controversy, Brahmavihari Swami said BAPS had spent nearly a decade engaging with French authorities before receiving permission to build a temple in the country. He also referred to the organisation’s participation in a cultural procession on the River Seine, involving approximately 5,500 people aboard 11 boats.

The monk said the Eiffel Tower’s management had welcomed the delegation, which visited the monument during normal opening hours to avoid inconveniencing other visitors.

Explaining the religious discipline observed by monks, he said the practice of brahmacharya, or celibacy, was a matter of personal spiritual commitment and should not be interpreted as a rejection of women or as justification for gender discrimination.

“As monks, we observe our spiritual disciplines, which we observe but never enforce upon anybody,” he said.

Emphasising that protecting human life takes precedence over religious rules, Brahmavihari Swami said monks must put aside their restrictions when someone is in danger.

“If the life of a woman is in danger, all the monks have to give up their laws and help the lady first. Life is the most sacred. You understand? That’s the law,” he said.

His remarks at the summit addressed the distinction between personal religious observance and the enforcement of religious practices in public settings.

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