It should be forewarned that the dilemma of free elections for constituent assembly (the process of electing a body for drafting a new constitution) in Nepal is that it will potentially lead to victory by anti-liberal forces, and thereby give rise to “illiberal democracy” and Maoist socialism-that is, a freely elected government, which however fails to safeguard basic liberties and individual freedom of Nepalese citizens.

Fareed Zakaria (Editor of Newsweek International) cautions that we are witnessing a disturbing phenomenon of so-called democratically elected regimes, even those that have been re-elected or re-affirmed through referendum, especially in the Third World countries from Peru to Philippines. He calls this phenomenon the “rise of illiberal democracies”- states that hold free elections but ignore constitutional limits on their power, deprive their citizens of basic rights, and do not honor the rule of the law. Zakaria argues that democracy without constitutional liberalism produces centralized regimes with erosion of liberty, ethnic competition, conflict, and war - a looming possibility for Nepal following King Gyanendra’s recent relinquishment of executive power to the ex-Parliamentary leaders.