The photograph actually shows the ‘First Battalion Perak Sikhs’, the armed military arm of the Perak Police Force.
The Battalion had its roots in the ‘Perak Armed Force’ which was a mix of races (Sikhs, Punjabi, Malays and Chinese), first commanded by Captain Swinburne and from 1879 by Major R S F Walker CMG. The ‘Armed Force’ was disbanded in early 1884 and ‘The First Battalion Perak Sikhs’, was established on 15 May 1884 to replace them. (read more here)