Japanese emperor Naruhito’s niece princess Mako married her former classmate Kei Komuro in a low key wedding in Japan. The wedding meant that the princess Mako would now be considered as an ordinary citizen as per the customs and law in Japan where female imperial family members forfeit their royal status upon marriage to a commoner.

Mako was seen carrying a bouquet of flowers when she stepped out of her family’s imperial residence on Tuesday. She was also accompanied by her parents as the family bade goodbye to each other in the presence of a crowd of journalists.

Prince Akishino said in a statement that he approved of his daughter’s “unprecedented marriage” partly because the couple had “never wavered” in spite of facing opposition.

The princess had announced her engagement with Kei Komuro in 2017. They had met in the International Christian University in Tokyo back in 2012 and Mako had said that Kei had won her heart with “his bright smiles like the sun”

The couple however came under heavy scrutiny in Japan as members of the royal family are expected to be the guardian of traditions. The media then reported about an alleged money dispute between Kei Komuro’s mother and a former fiancé where claims of non-repayment of debt by Komuro’s family were floated. This damaged the public perception about the couple and the official explanation given out was that the couple needed time to arrange the marriage ceremony. The wedding was also postponed.

According to reports, Mako had been diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) after her engagement with Kei got embroiled in a money scandal. The Imperial Household Agency had also blamed intense media scrutiny and the relentless attacks on social media to cause the deterioration of princess Mako’s mental health.

Princess Mako in her statement after the wedding said, “Kei is irreplaceable for me,” and also added, “For us, marriage is a necessary choice to live while cherishing our hearts.” The princess further noted that, “The flow of arbitrary criticism of Kei’s actions, as well as one-sided speculation that ignored my feelings, made falsehoods somehow seem like reality and turn into an unprovoked story that spread,”

As per reports, the couple would soon leave for the US which has drawn comparisons with British royals Meghan Markle and Prince Harry and the couple now considered as Japan’s Harry and Meghan.