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Eiffel Tower chief to leave after women staff removed during Hindu group visit

SETE, which runs the Eiffel Tower, said director general Patrick Branco Ruivo will leave at the end of 2026 after women staff were removed during a 5 September visit by the Hindu group BAPS. Outlets differ on the strike date, whether the probe was internal or independent, and how much of BAPS's position they give.

10 outlets · 1L · 7C · 2R First reported Account updated

Updated (version 6). New coverage since the last version from RFI, The Hill, The National.

Image: France 24
Image: The Independent
Image: The Straits Times
Image: South China Morning Post
Image: GB News
Image: The National
Image: Deutsche Welle
Image: The Hill

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The story, neutrally told

SETE, the company that runs the Eiffel Tower, said on 29 September that its director general, Patrick Branco Ruivo, will step down at the end of the year. SETE said a probe found "operational flaws and shortcomings" in organising a 5 September visit, which led to the "unacceptable" removal of women staff; most outlets call the probe internal, while DW calls it independent. The visitors were about 100 members of BAPS, a Hindu group in the Swaminarayan tradition with ties to Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, in France for the opening of a temple near Paris.

Staff said women were replaced by men at some posts and told not to cross certain areas while the delegation was present. Staff then struck and the tower closed for a day; The Independent and DW give 7 September, while France 24 says the walkout was on 8 September. SETE had earlier acknowledged the delegation asked to limit "interactions with women" and said these conditions "should not have been accepted".

BAPS apologised for "any pain or inconvenience caused"; in DW's account it also denied asking for women to be removed or hidden, saying its monks' practices do not require women to be excluded. Paris mayor Emmanuel Gregoire, a Socialist, called the decision "absurd, unjust and unacceptable" and ordered two probes; a person close to the mayor told AFP the mayor acknowledged Ruivo's "responsible decision". SETE chair Ariel Weil said the coming months would prepare the leadership transition and asked for a "dedicated protocol department" and gender-equality measures and training.

The Independent adds that Marine Le Pen and National Assembly president Yael Braun-Pivet criticised the move, and that BAPS reportedly made the request because monks in the delegation, including its 93-year-old spiritual leader, have vows forbidding contact with women.

Every sentence links to the reporting it rests on.

Left1 outlet

Framing
The Independent gives the fullest account, with political reaction, staff statements and the monks' vows as explanation.
Emphasis
Quotes from Le Pen, Braun-Pivet and Gregoire; the staff statement; the religious reason for the request.
Leaves out or plays down
BAPS's denial of asking for women to be removed.
Charged language
“made invisible because of their sex”
For example
“I refuse to allow women to be compelled to step aside in order to meet the demands of foreign visitors.” — The Independent

Centre7 outlets

Framing
Mostly straight reports of the resignation, focused on SETE's findings and on BAPS's background and Modi ties.
Emphasis
The probe findings, BAPS's profile and apology; DW includes BAPS's denial.
Leaves out or plays down
France 24 and DW leave out the party-political quotes; only DW carries BAPS's denial.
Charged language
“scandal”“unacceptable”
For example
“BAPS denied asking for female employees to be removed or hidden during the visit.” — Deutsche Welle
“Eiffel Tower chief to step down after female staff scandal” — France 24

Right2 outlets

Framing
The Straits Times runs AFP copy stressing the cross-party outcry; GB News leads on women left "humiliated" and on the chief having "quit".
Emphasis
Outcry in a country that prizes secularism and gender equality (AFP); women being replaced by men.
Leaves out or plays down
No BAPS denial or monks' vows detail; the Straits Times gives no strike date.
Charged language
“humiliated”“quits”“uproar”
For example
“has quit after female staff were left "humiliated" by being sidelined for a Hindu religious group” — GB News
“an outcry across political spectrum in France which prizes secularism and gender equality” — The Straits Times