I was completely edited out of MAFS Australia 2026 after baseless allegations about my groom

A bride who was cut out of MAFS Australia 2026 has spoken out about the allegations made against her groom. Micah Lomu and Ankita Karungalekar were axed from the show, when producers were tipped off about anonymous claims circulating about Micah.

Micah and Ankita filmed their wedding, honeymoon, and some early stages of the experiment before being removed. Channel Nine then buried the footage involving them, and decided it will never make it to air.

It has been reported Micah was accused of being violent towards a former partner. The claims have been described by other publications as “violent sex crimes”. All of which he has denied. Producers of the show were tipped off about the allegations spreading on TikTok.

The couple had spent three days honeymooning together, and were happy. They returned to Australia, ready to carry on filming, and were told they were no longer allowed to have any contact with one another. The rest of the cast were told to pretend they had never met them.

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A post shared by Ankita Ranjana Suresh Karungalekar (@ankita_karungalekar)

Ankita believes her groom and said she received a DM herself from an account that described Micah as “manipulative” and a “cheater”. However, she has said there were “no receipts of sexual assault or domestic violence.”

In an interview with Women’s Day, she shared more about what happened when they were booted from the show. “We were on our honeymoon when all of a sudden the producers said they wanted to talk to us separately,” Ankita said. “They told me there was some news circulating about Micah and they just wanted to make sure I was safe. I had no idea what was going on.”

Ankita said she told producers she wanted some time to think about the claims, but just hours later was told to pack her bags and she and Micah were escorted to get a flight home.

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“I was shattered. I couldn’t really process it, and I still don’t think I’ve processed it,” she said.  “It was mentally draining because at that point I had been single for two years, and to finally be able to live that moment – it was like they dangled the teddy bear in front of me and just took it right away.

“I also think it’s a missed opportunity to explore my connection [with Micah]. I had to get permission from my parents to actually get on the show. It’s not part of my culture and I lost out on income that I would have got had I stayed at work.

“Ever since I was a little girl, I’ve always wanted to get married and to me, my wedding was real.  Even if people think it’s a fake show, for me the vows, the wedding, my family was there, his family was there. So it was far more a real setting.”

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A post shared by Ankita Ranjana Suresh Karungalekar (@ankita_karungalekar)

Ankita said she felt “blindsided” by Channel Nine’s decision to axe them from the show. The show told the couple they were being axed to safeguard their mental health, given the nature of the claims.

She added: “We were shocked when Channel Nine said we couldn’t handle the backlash. That’s not their decision to make. We went through all the psychological checks, hundreds of pages of paperwork, background vetting – and passed everything. Suddenly, they decided we weren’t strong enough.”

She added: “We were floored that Channel Nine made such a huge decision based on TikTok videos without receipts.”

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