Margaret Czerwienski, Lilia Kilburn and Amulya Mandava accused the university of both disregarding allegations that John Comaroff had sexually harassed students for years, and of allowing him to intimidate students by threatening their academic careers if they reported him, The New York Times reported on Tuesday.

According to the lawsuit filed to Boston federal court, Massachusetts, Harvard allegedly ignored numerous alarm signs, which allowed Professor John Comaroff to sexually harass one student and harm her career, as well as jeopardising the careers of her two fellow students, who spoke in her defense, as cited in the report.

The Harvard authorities have found that Comaroff had engaged in verbal conduct violating policies on sexual and gender-based harassment, but he was not found responsible for unwanted sexual contact, according to the newspaper.

The professor was placed on administrative leave until the spring semester and prohibited from teaching for the next academic year.