Nepal, July 10 -- The Constitution Amendment Task Force headed by Prime Minister Balendra Shah's chief adviser Asim Shah is supposed to submit its report next week after months-long consultations with former PMs and presidents, legal experts and civil society.

Constitutions are occasionally amended in democracies so the statute keeps up with the times. But if what the ruling RSP has laid out is anything to go by, it wants a fundamental overhaul. It has been talking about a directly elected executive head, dismantling provincial assemblies and perhaps federalism itself, debated holding elections through proportional representation and a partyless Upper House.

It has been nearly 11 years since the Constitution was promulgated. It has ens...