Arnaud Bertrand
This sounds completely unreal but I double checked and it's true: the Eiffel Tower was closed on Monday due to a Hindu sect that demanded that all women "make themselves invisible" so their 93-year-old guru wouldn't have to see them. The sect in question is BAPS - "Bochasanwasi Akshar Purushottam Swaminarayan Sanstha," which roughly translates to "the organization of Swaminarayan followers who believe in Akshar Purushottam, based in Bochasan" (a village in Gujarat). It's a very wealthy organization with deep ties to Modi's BJP (Modi is himself from Gujarat), known for building mega-temples around the world and whose doctrine demands absolute obedience to a living guru as the sole path to God. It's not their first controversy: in 2021, the FBI raided their massive New Jersey temple after workers - mostly Dalits, India's lowest caste (the so-called "untouchables") - alleged they'd been lured to the US on fake religious visas, had their passports confiscated, and were forced to work 13-hour days for about $1 an hour, confined to a guarded compound (see https://www.nytimes.com/2021/05/11/nyregion/nj-hindu-temple-india-baps.html). Long story short, they just opened a new mega-temple in France (the website: https://www.bapsmandirparis.fr/main-home) - specifically in Bussy-Saint-Georges (30km away from Paris) - presented as "the biggest Hindu temple built in continental Europe in a traditional style" (https://www.france24.com/fr/info-en-continu/20260906-foule-%C3%A0-l-inauguration-d-un-temple-embl%C3%A8me-de-l-hindouisme-en-france). Their guru was there for the inauguration and, as you do, wanted to visit the Eiffel Tower while in France. But, thing is, his doctrine dictates that women must not be in his presence. And here is where it gets unreal: when his entourage requested a private visit, the Eiffel Tower's management actually agreed to the terms and ordered all female employees - including subcontractors - to hide (https://actu.fr/ile-de-france/paris_75056/la-tour-eiffel-met-a-l-ecart-son-personnel-feminin-lors-d-une-visite-privee-le-monument-reste-ferme-ce-lundi_64758503.html). This was on Saturday and, France being France (in a good way), on Monday the women who'd been told to make themselves invisible made themselves very, very visible: the staff went on strike and shut down the Eiffel Tower. So there you have it, unreal but true: the Eiffel Tower, symbol of the French Republic, is closed because a 93-year-old Hindu guru refuses to be in the presence of women. (picture below the picture of their guru on his visit, taken from https://x.com/BritIndianVoice/status/2096273026652283336?s=20)
BAPS Mandir Swaminarayan Hindou de Paris
Nous comprenons les préoccupations exprimées et les prenons très au sérieux. Compte tenu de la taille de notre délégation, la visite a été organisée en coordination avec les équipes de la tour Eiffel, au début des horaires habituels d’ouverture, afin de limiter autant que possible toute gêne pour les autres visiteurs. À notre connaissance, à aucun moment l’accès à la tour Eiffel n’a été refusé à qui que ce soit. Nous tenons néanmoins à présenter nos sincères excuses à toute personne qui aurait pu être blessée ou gênée par cette situation. Nous sommes profondément attachés aux valeurs universelles de respect mutuel et de service aux autres. 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. 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.
