Ok. Solved. I really did not want to splice into any part of the wiring harness, but was curious as to why the socket wire was wired into the fuse box in conjunction with the gas tank sending unit wire.
Ran the socket bulb for the gear shift indicator to the fuse box and connected it to a separate terminal on the fuse for the dash panel lights. Works only with the lights on and also now has light dimming feature, just like the dash lights.
Thanks for everyone's suggestions!
