Eiffel Tower chief to step down after female staff replaced during religious visit

Patrick Branco Ruivo, the director general of the company operating the Eiffel Tower, is set to resign at the end of this year following controversy over female employees being removed during a visit by a Hindu religious group. The company Sete revealed on September 5 that an internal investigation had found "operational flaws and shortcomings" in organizing the visit, which led to the "unacceptable" removal of women staff.

The delegation from the Hindu group Bochasanwasi Akshar Purushottam Swaminarayan Sanstha, or Baps, consisted of about 100 people and requested limited interactions with women during their private visit on the 5th of September. Union representative Diane Davoine stated that women were asked to vacate their workstations so that men could take their places as the delegation passed through.

The union demanded that women be treated equally in the future. In response to the backlash, Sete has acknowledged that the request should not have been accepted. The company's board chairman, Ariel Weil, announced plans to establish a dedicated protocol department to implement new measures and training programs aimed at promoting gender equality.

The socialist mayor of Paris, Emmanuel Gregoire, called the decision to remove women staff "absurd, unjust and unacceptable" and deemed Ruivo's departure a "responsible decision." The Eiffel Tower, owned by the City of Paris, attracts nearly seven million visitors annually. The Hindu organization BAPS was founded over a century ago in India's Gujarat state and has built temples worldwide, including in the United States, Europe, and the Middle East.