[11] After working there for two years, he returned to India and joined his own family venture Jalan Brothers, a distributor of plastic products.

Jalan claims to have turned it into a Rs 250-crore business before acceding to his Wharton School classmate Anil Ambani's wish to join the Reliance Industries Limited.

Jalan joined Reliance Industries Limited as Chief Executive Officer, Polypropylene Business in 1995.

[15] From 2003 onwards, Jalan has led Reliance Energy, a distribution company into the over Rs 23000 crore RInfra.

[16] New Delhi power distribution companies BSES Yamuna and BSES Rajdhani, for which Lalit Jalan has served as Chairman, have been the focus of controversies concerning energy metering,[17] the frequent removal of CEOs and recent government-ordered audit, and the threat of Revocation of License and Non-Payment of dues to Power Suppliers like NTPC.

It issued a consent order (no 426/2011 of 14 January 2011) directing Anil Ambani and others, including Lalit Jalan, to pay INR 250 million (approximately $6 million) to settle allegations they illegitimately used the funds from External Commercial Borrowings in the Indian stock market and without the applicant admitting or denying any charges or guilt.