As a bureaucrat, he served as a member of the Indian Administrative Service from 1958 until his retirement in 2001 as 11th Chief Election Commissioner of India.

His various postings included sub-divisional magistrate in Mahendragarh, now in Haryana, and deputy commissioner of the then Lahaul-Spiti district, now in Himachal Pradesh.

[8][9] Following the Congress Party's victory in the 2009 Indian election, he was re-inducted into the council of ministers and held cabinet rank in the second term.

It was during this tenure that India hosted the 2010 Commonwealth Games in New Delhi which also contributed to concerns and controversies, including several allegations of corruption and mismanagement which later led to his removal from the ministry in a cabinet reshuffle in January 2011.

[15][16] In 1972, Gill authored the book Himalayan Wonder: Travels in Lahaul and Spiti, recounting stories from his days as a young IAS[clarification needed] officer in the Lahaul-and-Spiti district, then in Punjab.