Panchayati Raj Institutions (PRIs) form the constitutional foundation of grassroots democracy in India, yet Jammu and Kashmir followed a separate path for three decades because its special status under Article 370 kept the region outside Part IX of the Constitution. This paper compares the structure and working of PRIs in Jammu and Kashmir before and after the constitutional changes of August 2019. The study is descriptive and analytical in design, drawing on legislative documents, institutional histories, and recent empirical studies of the region. It examines five dimensions of local governance: institutional structure, political participation, financial autonomy, representation of women and marginalised communities, and transparency and accountability. The analysis shows that the post-2019 framework has completed the formal architecture of decentralisation by extending the Seventy-Third Amendment, creating directly elected District Development Councils, and guaranteeing reservation across all three tiers. At the same time, functional empowerment has moved more slowly: panchayats remain financially dependent, citizen satisfaction with scheme delivery is moderate, and participation varies sharply between the Jammu and Kashmir regions. The paper concludes that structural integration has outpaced substantive self-government, and that the future of grassroots democracy in the Union Territory depends on the devolution of funds, functions, and functionaries to the institutions now in place.